Venom
by MoonlightGypsy
Summary: M NCIS gets pulled into a serial killer case that the FBI has been trying to crack for over a year. When the strange state of the victims gives them little to go on, can they figure it out before its too late for one of their own?
1. PROLOGUE

****A/N:** I do not own, or claim to own, any rights or trademark on NCIS or the characters used here. I simply like to play colorforms. Note though, that the creativity of the story, and it's plot., those are indeed mine.  
><strong>WARNING : This story not suitable for anyone under 18.<strong> **

**PROLOGUE**

_She was confused when her eyes fluttered open…but she couldn't see anything. Hadn't she just been out to dinner having intelligent conversation and a glass of wine? She was having a good time…she had remembered laughing and smiling…and then what ? _

_Random images of her stumbling feet on gravel and hands helping her into a car danced through her mind._

_Maybe she had too much to drink and someone took her home ? Her mouth felt dry._

_But then she could smell candle wax…a warm almost vanilla scent, along with old wood and…another smell... it was a familiar chemical smell…_

_As her senses came alive a bit more, she realized she was uncomfortable. _

_It was some kind of hard surface she was on...and tied to. _

_She felt a sudden wave of panic as she weakly tried to move her arms but found she couldn't. She tried to pick up her head, and was also unable to do so. _

_She realized she had very little if any clothing on when a slight draft went across her skin. Someone was behind her...the thought shot through her mind - she knew she was going to die._

_She tried to speak, but fear had locked up her vocal chords. Suddenly she felt something, at the top of her head...and then in her hair..._

_Paralyzed by the sheer horror of it, she felt a sleek twirling through her long, red tresses. It was moving and sliding around her neck. She jumped, heart racing, as something banged the table loudly. In a flash she felt the white hot slicing pain at her collarbone, causing her to finally let out a terrified scream._


	2. Chapter 2

They had stopped after work to have some drinks for McGee's Birthday.

O'Malley's was teeming with people. It was a typical theme restaurant with a bit more in way of Irish food and some novelty beer. It was only 20 minutes from the office, so it was a frequented by the NCIS teams and other assorted building employees.

"Open mine, open mine McGee !" Abby was glowing with excitement. They were all sitting at a circular table, in the back, but it was still pretty loud.

Ziva, Tony, and Palmer had all made it out with Abby and McGee, but Gibbs was still wrapping up something at the office, and Ducky was coming back from some vacation days tomorrow.

McGee looked at Abby, and down to the package on the table in front of him. His green eyes looking larger than usual. "Uh...Abby..." He was unsure of opening it in front of mixed company. Last time it was Star Wars boxers and Tony tortured him over it for months, calling him McProbie Ben Doggie. A new twist on Probie-wan.

Tony looked on with one eyebrow raised. "Aw, c'mon McGoo, it can't be that bad." He was smiling like a cat ready to pounce.

"C'mon McGee," Palmer moaned, "You still have to open mine and if I don't get home soon to help pick music for my wedding I'm a dead man." Palmer then realized what he'd just said, and stammered, "Uh...I mean-"

"Oh we _know_ what you meant," Tony said, impishly," It's all over for you my friend. You're a caged bird that will never use it's wings...or testicles, again." Tony made a sad face.

"Do not listen to him Jimmy," Ziva said dismissively. "He is just jealous." She said it, giving Tony a dirty look.

"Oh...Abby, I..." they all heard McGee's strange tone as he turned the Hamburger phone over in his hands, and then genuinely beamed at Abby, "This is awesome!"

Her eyes sparkled as she tugged on one of her dark pigtails. "Really? You really like it ?"

He leaned over and hugged her and kissed her cheek," Yes, yes I do!" It was hard to stick to the rules and get good gifts. They'd put the limit at $25.00, so...this was a really good gift considering…

"Very nice, McHamburglar," Tony said, laughing, and then "Ow!" when Ziva punched him in the arm.

"Okay, now mine," said Palmer, handing McGee a small box.

While the box was being opened, Tony turned to Ziva, "It's going to be practical...an accessory to Elf Lord pursuits..." and as he said it, he and McGee announced at the same time, " A clip-on light for my reader."

Ziva and Abby both looked at the box in McGee's hand, at back him, a little amazed.

"Wow Tony, how did you do that?" Abby asked with wide eyes. " Can you predict anything else tonight?" She smiled her little devil smile, black lips curving mischiveously.

"Why yes Ms. Sciuto, I believe I can. I predict..." he put a hand to his temple and closed his eyes," that Palmer is going to sleep outside with the German Shepherd tonight because he's already 40 minutes late..."

"Oh God!" Jimmy exclaimed, looking at his watch," Sorry, I gotta go! Bye guys ! Happy Birthday Tim!" he said as he rushed off.

"And...wait, I see something else..." Tony continued, "McGee will be calling phone sex lines from his Hamburger...phone."

Ziva couldn't help the low chuckle even as she hit Tony again.

"Gee, thanks Tony," McGee said sarcastically, giving him a sour look.

"Do not defile the Hamburger Phone Tony!" Abby cried, in mock indignation. "You never know when you might need one too," she said, already thinking it would be good for Tony to have one too for his Birthday. Or maybe a pizza slice phone, if she could find one. She laughed out loud at the thought.

Tony smiled at them. He loved when they were all able to cut loose once in a while, and he loved seeing them happy.

"Here Tim," he reached into his pocket, pulling out an envelope and handing it to him.

McGee looked at him suspiciously.

"Go ahead, Probie, it ain't gonna bite you."

McGee opened it, and looked slightly perplexed. He looked back at Tony. "Movie passes?"

"Uh...well, I just thought-"Tony began, unsure if he'd made a mistake on his choice of gift.

"That's great!" McGee said happily." Not sure who I'd take..."

"Well," Tony said a little uncomfortably," I figure we could maybe go, you and I...for when the do the foreign film festival on the third Sunday of the month. That is, if you don't have to go to church, or pet kittens or...whatever you may be obligated to do on Sundays..."

"Tony, that would be terrific."

McGee said it with such fondness, Tony felt a little embarrassed, so he just smiled and said," Good."

"I believe it is my turn, McGee," Ziva said sweetly, handing him a package.

He took it from her, truly curious as to what it could be. They all watched him tear through the paper.

"Just what I needed," he smiled, and held it up. " A new ankle strap for my knife…uh…I guess I have to get one to put in it…"

Tony looked at Ziva, furrowing his brow, "McGee doesn't do ankle strap knives, Ziva. That's far too..."

"Smart?" she quipped. "You of all people Tony, know how important it is to be prepared. We almost lost you..." she began, but trailed off, realizing she had taken the conversation down the wrong path. She looked at him for a moment, uncertain how to recover.

"It's okay, Ziva." Abby said it easily, smoothing it over like she often did for them all at moments like this. "If Tony hadn't been wearing a vest that night...we would have lost him..." they were all silent for a moment. "So, I'm voting Ziva's gift the winner tonight."

"Here here !" Tony said, raising his glass as they all did, and toasted to McGee.

Even as he threw his drink back, Tony's mind was a derailed train now. He saw Cade again, going down, killed by Stratton's bullet, and then E.J... The guilt and pain were always there. The guilt that he was used to bring them to their execution, and the guilt he was alive when he was supposed to die with them. The images flashed by instantly, along with the dinners and intimate moments he and E.J. had shared in her apartment before the P2P case was done…

Ziva noticed him zone out a bit, and put her hand on his arm. Abby and McGee were chatting now animatedly with each other.

"Are you alright?"her tone was soft and low.

" Yes," he gave her a big smile. But they could all read him so well.

"I should not have brought up that night..."she said softly, looking into his eyes. She remembered when he'd sat with her, talking about how much he understood E.J.,that it was different with her... She wondered if he'd still thought that, after she'd taken the microchip. Tony's eyes now looked like a deep moss green as something glittered in them dangerously.

_Why does she do this to me,_ he thought, but he knew sometimes she couldn't help herself. She cared about him.

He sighed. "I'm fine, Ziva."

She shrugged. "Okay." she didn't believe him, but also knew pushing was not going to accomplish anything.

"Ziva, you about ready to go ?" Abby asked, putting on her plaid lined cape. Ziva had given her a ride earlier for the Navy Yard.

" Yes, okay, I'll drive you back to your car." She quickly turned back to Tony before getting up, "If you need to talk, I hope you will call me." The concern and affection clear in her tone.

He looked at her, blankly and said," Goodnight, Ziva."

Abby ran over and pounced on him in his seat for a brief moment and kissed him hard on the cheek. "Good night Tony." She smiled and rubbed off the black lipstick she left on him before tackling McGee next.

Tony saw McGee's gaze trail after Abby as she left with Ziva. He could see pretty clearly they still had the hots for each other. He wished they would just get back together...but then again, Rule number 12 had its merits. Tony had learned that the hard way. More than once. _Brave or stupid, DiNozzo ?_ He thought bitterly.

McGee turned to him, " So, I think I'm gonna head home..."

"Okay then, Probie. Happy Birthday." Tony got up and gave McGee a warm smile and an actual hug instead of just a shot to the arm. McGee was a little stiff and not expecting it but pleased nonetheless.

"Thanks Tony. And for the movie passes. I am really going to look forward to it."

"Okay, well, take it easy, it's not a date, McGee."

"Okay, okay," he rolled his eyes at Tony. But then he looked at him, and tilted his head, pensively. "You okay Tony ?" He just had that feeling. The mention of that night in the alley would mess with his head again.

"What is everyone so worried about ? I'm fine. Better than fine. I'm fantastically fine. Actually I'm superfine..."

McGee smiled. "Okay. You walking out ?" He already knew the answer before he asked, but needed to anyway.

"No, I think I'm just gonna hang around for a little while."

McGee nodded," Okay Tony, good night."

"G'nite Probie."

McGee walked out to the parking lot, and put the bag with his gifts in the car. He pulled out his cell phone, and hit speed dial 2.

_"Gibbs."_

" Hi Boss, it's me." A pause on the other end prompted him to say, "McGee."

_"Yes McGee. I know who you are."_

"Right. Um...we all were at O'Malleys tonight...and it was really fun but…"

_" Sometime this year would be good McGee."_

" It's Tony. I think... Maybe you could…"

There was a pause.

_" I'll handle it McGee. You go on home."_

"Thanks Boss."

_" And McGee…Happy Birthday."_

" Thanks Boss! You know, I'm sorry you missed-" he heard the line cut out, " the party..."

He shrugged. At least he got a "Happy Birthday" from the Boss. He smiled to himself. And more importantly, Gibbs was going to look after Tony.

Since the devastating end to Tony's mole hunt, they all noticed he had been a little more...schizo for a lack of a better word. Sometimes too animated, even for Tony. sometimes too somber, definitely for Tony. But they all knew it hadn't been easy on him. So when he occasionally got quiet, and ended up at a bar having one too many to dull down his demons, they tried to look after him, to make sure he was okay. And usually that took Gibbs. He was the only one who really got through to the SFA. _And thank God someone could, _he thought, because he didn't know if he could carry the kind of stuff on his shoulders that Tony did. For all the goofing off, he knew what kind of caliber man his friend was.

Tony had ditched the table for the bar. He liked the bar at O'Malley's. Mediocrity at it's best. A place to blend into the background. She'd liked those too.

He downed his shot of whiskey, staring at the glass in his hand as he felt the burn, and then asked for another.

He remembered her apartment. The bare bones of pristine mission style furniture. She didn't keep a lot before she had been running her team in Rota. But getting new things had been easy for her. Her tastes were simple. And it was a warm environment, sueded couch, browns and oranges in the living room, but he had teased her about the fake plants, though understandable a government agent would have no time for real ones.

And he remembered her bed, how it felt to lie next to her and touch her for hours. She smelled like rain. She'd been very tactile…sensual, like him, but could easily bypass all the niceties and have him tangled up in her sheets working damned hard within five minutes of walking in the door... He smiled to himself recalling the night he showed up with flowers for her and she threw them on the floor, laughing at him.

"What is that about, Special Agent DiNozzo ?" she laughed and grabbed his tie, pulling him down for a kiss.

"Whoa, I thought all women liked flowers." He gave a half frown, and then couldn't help but smile. He pulled her to him, as their lips met, twisting into eachother.

After a minute, they came up for air. She was sliding his jacket off him.

"I'm not that kind of girl," she purred. "And you're not that kind of guy."

He smiled, not letting her see the little seed of disappointment he felt. He knew she cared for him, and he had been wrestling the idea of starting something more serious with her, in spite of Rule number 12. He wasn't madly in love with her, like he had been with Jeanne. But, he felt something that might have been worth looking into. _Might have been._ But – she wanted it kept cooler, and that was okay with him. Almost easier to not deal with the whole "feelings" thing. It certainly didn't affect the chemistry they had.

When she left D.C., they'd parted friends.

And then he found out about the microchip. And it made him second guess how well he thought he knew her. She did have her reasons…but it was something he couldn't look past.

Still, she didn't deserve what happened. What he had let happen to her.

He took another two shots of whiskey, and then stared at the wood grain on the bar for a while.

She trusted him. Jeanne had _trusted_ him. They both had made that critical mistake.

"You're a real catch, DiNozzo," he said blearily to himself.

He paid his tab, and was leaving the tip on the bar, when he felt a solid hand on his shoulder. He knew who it was without even turning the barstool around.

"Goin' somewhere, DiNozzo ?"

"Boss. " He turned around. "How nice to see you."

Gibbs ran his concerned eyes over Tony's face. He looked like he's had a few. But not bad. Nothing like the last time.

Tony stood up, a little unsteadily. _Ahh, there it is_, Gibbs thought. Tony could put it away, and talk like he was straight as an arrow. And then fall flat on his face.

"I guess I missed the party," Gibbs said, "but I may as well give you a ride home."

Tony chuckled. "Uh-huh, you missed the Hamburgler phone. It's really something." He smiled at the older man.

"I'm sure it's fantastic. Now let's go." Gibbs walked out slowly in front of him…just in case he'd underestimated what kind of drinking Tony had been able to do until he got there.

They got to the car, and in it without too much trouble. Or noise. Tony quiet. Bad sign.

They got to Tony's apartment building in 25 minutes. He hadn't said a word. And neither had Gibbs. But, he knew he needed to give Tony an opportunity to get it off his chest. Whatever was bothering him. So when they pulled up, he shut the car off, and sat for a moment.

Tony stared out the window for a moment and then turned to him.

"You're not expecting a kiss goodnight are ya' Boss ? Because, I seriously would have bought gum or something…"

Gibbs rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Oh no, I forgot – Rule number 12. I'm not really into the whole, you're a guy thing, anyway, but if I were it would still be a bad idea cause' of Rule number 12…"

Now he knew. Where Tony was going with this.

"You're really not my type either, DiNozzo.."

He shrugged, in a slightly exaggerated way. There was the whiskey at work.

"I can't say I mind hearing that Boss, though I should be shattered." Tony held his hands to his chest in mock devastation.

Gibbs smiled in spite of himself. Then he waited some more.

Tony was quiet now again. When Gibbs looked at him, his face was turned, looking out the window.

"Rule number 12," Tony sighed. "You know, you never told me so."

Gibbs' response was softspoken, "Never had to."

Tony shook his head. "No." And then he turned to Gibbs, "You were right though. Again. I never should have gotten involved with her."

He could see the subtle shimmer of unshed tears in the younger man's eyes. "Were you? Involved ?"

Tony knew Gibbs was asking if it was more than just sex to him, if she meant something.

"I guess…a little…I dunno. Maybe not…" he shifted a little in the car and looked out onto the street again. "She trusted me, though…and she shouldn't have…"

"She knew the risks. She knew the job. And she made her own choices." Gibbs said it in a steady stream, looking at him. "And you almost got dead yourself, DiNozzo. No one had a handle on that situation."

Tony took a shaky breath. "I guess, Boss."

They sat for another minute, before Tony looked at him, green eyes on him intently, and said, "Thanks Boss," and got out of the car to walk into the apartment building.

Gibbs watched him go into the foyer, the door shutting behind him.

"You're welcome, Tony," he said softly to himself, waiting another minute, before starting his car and driving away.

The next morning at the office, Tony greeted McGee with a cheerful, "Good morning, McHamburglar !" He'd had three cups of coffee already today.

McGee rolled his eyes and mumbled _"Great."_ As he sat down at his desk. Ziva looked on with amusement.

"So," Tony continued, "You take it for a test drive McGee ?"

"What ? Oh – you mean the phone ?"

"Yeah, did you call anyone to meet up ? Get it ? Meat up ?" Tony was grinning at his own bad joke.

McGee didn't respond, just raised his eyebrows and looked back at his computer as it booted up.

"I like the hamburger. And we should go shopping for your new knife , McGee," Ziva smiled at him from her desk.

"Ah…okay…yeah. I'd like that," he said but wondered how frightening it would be having her pulling out an assortment of knives…and test them how ? He shuddered.

Tony was smiling at him. Again. And then walked over to Tim, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Well, McGee, maybe you can bring your burger phone, to call us in case Ziva puts you through the grinder…"he snickered. He was killing himself today.

Just then, Gibbs walked quickly through without stopping, "Grab your gear. Let's go DiNozzo, speed it up or you're dead meat."

Ziva laughed as Tony's face dropped and he scrambled to get back to his desk and get his things.

"How does he _do_ that ?"

When they got to Anacostia Park, there was a larger crowd behind the yellow tape than usual.

"This is a Marine Boss, right ? Not a rock star ?" Tony asked taking his equipment out of the truck.

"It is a pretty big crowd," McGee observed.

"Yeah…too big," they heard Gibbs say as he walked off toward the F.B.I. personnel arguing with Ducky just beyond the tape and mass of onlookers.

"Doctor Mallard, this is our case. We have been dealing with this killer and his M.O. for about a year now. If you like I can have Fornell call Gibbs and explain –"

"My good man," Ducky cut him off, "you and I both know what's going to happen here. NCIS has been called in because the victim is one of ours. And Gibbs is not going to just let it go, and undoubtedly, you are just delaying the inevitable and we are losing precious time –"

"Problem, Duck?" Gibbs squinted in the morning sun, stepping in closely to Agent Dillon's personal space.

Ducky's hat took the upward tilt toward Gibbs. "Ah, Jethro, I think we have a bit of a situation here. When I arrived, I found the LEO's and also FBI agents, I am worried this crime scene is going to become a fiasco…"

It already was.

Gibbs flipped open his phone.

After a moment, he smiled. "Tobias."

"_Holy Christ, I knew it. I think I almost had you timed on this one Gibbs. I was only off by 15 minutes."_

"That just means one of us is getting slow."

"_Yeah well, you're only advantage is caffeine." He sounded sour already, knowing there would be a fight on this one. It was quiet on the line for a moment, then a heavy sigh. "Okay Gibbs, I'm gonna go easy on you here because I know what a stubborn bastard you are and I'm not in the mood for a world war."_

"Aw, you're doing that just for me, Tobias ? Has nothing to do with it being a case you've had for a **year** with no solve. You know Ducky and Abby are a good shot at helping get more pieces of the puzzle together for _you."_

"_I like how you just said "you" Gibbs As if you're not going to steamroll my whole crew over there, so I tell you what, we'll work together on this. You process this one and I'll have Dillon send you the files on the other vics. I'm also expecting you to work with him, and also Agent Chiu. I'll send the others back. And I want to be updated by you personally. Be nice, Gibbs, and I may just stop by and bring you some of that battery acid you drink."_

"Okay."

"_Would a thank you kill you, Gibbs ? Tell Dillon to call me. Now."_

And the line went dead.

Agent Dillon saw Gibbs quietly staring at him, and frowning , called his boss.

Once that was cleared up, Gibbs assigned Dillon, who was a hulking wall of a man, to assisting the LEO's with crowd control. It seemed in that brief time, there were twice as many people trying to get a look at the crime scene.

"What the hell…" he muttered to himself.

Ducky and Palmer were now at the dump site, Agent Chiu was speaking in a low voice to Ducky opposite the body. Tony was approaching with his camera, and had a strange look on his face, as did Ziva and McGee. They all seemed to be taking it in. He was going to headsmack all three of them in rapid succession if they didn't get to work.

As he got closer to the little area that was next to a rock embankment, he saw the body.

Eerie was the only way to describe it.

She was face up, eyes closed, red curls neatly brushed and splayed around her head, like a sunburst. She was white. Not the usual corpse white, a high porcelain like color, with a little bluish tint to her. Her body was fully clothed, arms folded neatly together, in a funerary pose. She had her clothes and shoes on, all her details neatly arranged. And around her head and feet Cathedral candles, some still lit, and and abundance of white roses which surrounded her. The last of fall leaves were coming down, and some had mixed in with the flowers. She looked like something out of a fairy tale, if not for the sickly rigidity of death.

The visual was almost hypnotic. It was designed, like someone had planned an elaborate photo shoot. Just the subject had been murdered for the shot.

He said nothing yet to his team, but as he walked up behind Ducky, who had knelt to start his initial examination, Gibbs saw something he knew was probably the signature of the killer, unless this somewhat conservative woman was into tattoos.

Underneath her impossibly pale, drawn face, was a mark on her throat, at top center.

Gibbs knew at the angle it was drawn, it wasn't an eight. It was sideways. It was the mark of infinity.

Just what they hell had they gotten into ?


	3. Chapter 3

As they all shook themselves free of the spell cast by the elaborate presentation of the dead woman in front of them, Gibbs shot an appraising glance to Agent Chiu. Chiu, with his slight, Asian frame was leaning over Ducky while the M.E. was taking the victims temperature. There was a strange smell emanating from the body…spicy, almost like incense.

"Chiu, how did we I.D. her ?" Gibbs asked flatly.

"Her purse is over by the tree there," he pointed behind them, "and the LEO's got her wallet out this morning. The killer always seems to want us to know the identity of the victim and leaves their belongings behind. The LEO's used gloves and put it back because we got lucky like that today. Petty Officer Yvonne McKenna, age 26, lives at 8A Skyline Drive, here in D.C." Chiu shifted his feet, watching Ducky gently pull down the neckline of the dead Petty Officer's sweater with his penlight. As Chiu expected, there were the marks.

"Hello," Ducky said in a soft tone, mostly to himself. "What is this my dear?"

Gibbs looked down, as did Tony who had been shooting the macabre scene. Ziva and McGee had still been standing looking, a bit mesmerized.

Along the top of her collarbone, were two marks, raised and slightly swollen. Puncture wounds…"like fang marks." McGee had breathed it out, finishing Gibbs' thought.

"Indeed that is exactly what they appear to be, Timothy," Ducky didn't look up but spoke to the corpse, "My poor dear, that must have been a very unpleasant experience."

"That's why we call him the Snakebite killer." Chiu stated, simply.

"Snakebite killer…" Tony interjected, "yeah…I think I heard about this one. All the victims are found, like this. Like a scene from a vampire story. If you think about it, it's very 1970's B-movie, like Lust For A Vampire, which was really, really bad but kinda hot cause the vampire was a lesbian-" he caught Gibbs' angry stare. "Ahhh…but as I was saying, I had heard that all the Snakebite's victims are posed, surrounded with the candles and roses…" he stared for a moment at her face, so drawn in, and the coppery swirls of hair around her. He shuddered. "It's been both men and women. And this is probably the fourth or fifth vic –"

"Fifth," Chiu stated, "and the time between the murders keeps getting shorter. And the crowds bigger."

Gibbs looked over at the mass of people Dillon was keeping back with the LEO's. Hard to watch all the watchers, with a crowd this big. Still, he scanned over them for a moment. Then he turned back to them.

"Ziva, statements, McGee, process." At his command they instantly set off to work.

"Jethro," Ducky said, his tone disturbed. "There's something else that seems fairly obvious here…"

"Yeah, Duck ?" He was concerned about the pause.

"This woman has very low blood volume."

Agent Chiu didn't look surprised. But patiently waited for them to ask him.

"What are you saying Duck ?" Gibbs asked, with a bad feeling growing in his gut.

"She's…been drained of most of her blood." Ducky shook his head. "This is most peculiar…and repugnant."

Gibbs looked at Chiu, expectantly, eyebrow raised.

"All of our vics have been found much the same way. Posed and prepared as you see them, snakebite somewhere on their chest or neck, drained of a good bit of their blood. You will probably see needle marks somewhere on the arms as well, where our M.E. said they were injected with other substances, including snake venom." Chiu paused, waiting to see if Gibbs wanted him to continue.

"And ?"

"None were sexually assaulted, but all were found exceptionally clean…the killer…shaves off the body hair…and cleans them up. And they have a layer of some kind of oil on them, almost like an incense oil. If you look underneath her, there's also a vinyl tarp, that she was pulled to this spot on." Chiu finished, looking back down to the body.

Along the edges of the elaborate spread, just slightly hidden, was a black matte surface.

"Any of the others in military branches or law enforcement?" Gibbs asked, wheels in his head spinning.

"No. She was the first one. You'll see later in the other files…there's not a lot to tie them into any common denominator. The killer has been very thorough. No prints. No hairs. We think that's part of the washing process. And even the clothes are cleaned…laundered or professionally cleaned."

Palmer was coming over with the gurney.

"I estimate she died sometime last night, Jethro," Ducky said, standing up,"but without the normal blood volume in the body, temperature is a bit off, and I'll have to get back to you on an exact time."

Gibbs nodded as Tony's camera flash bounced off the pale woman's face.

"It won't have been a quick death, Jethro," Ducky said slowly. "With a poisonous snake bite, any any additional toxins...she would have suffered." His last words reflected sadness for the Petty Officer. "Agent Chiu, was the exact type of snake or snake venom identified by your Medical Examiner ?'

"Yes, Doctor Mallard. It was a breed of Indian Cobra, but you'll have to read the report for the scientific name. The bites and the venom found in the blood came from the same type of snake, if not the same snake. There was also a trace of Rohypnol, though as I mentioned, none of the vics was sexually assaulted, it may have been used to subdue them. Other marks on the body indicate they were restrained at some point, but too weak or poisoned to struggle much."

"I believe we need to wait until all the other evidence is removed and bagged before we can lift her." Ducky had seen Palmer shifting restlessly on his feet next to them.

"Tony !" Gibbs growled out.

"On it Boss, helping McGee bag n' tag right now." Tony rushed off to get evidence bags.

Ducky sighed, looking at the trees around the embankment they were standing on. "Such a lovely place…like it was chosen to become part of this very somber scene. A tribute or a memorial. But to you my dear ? Or to something else?" he asked looking down once more at Yvonne McKennas beautiful, dead face, and the small infinity symbol on her throat.

"Forever silenced, or forever speaking?" Gibbs asked thoughtfully, taking note of it's placement.

"We've been trying to figure that out for quite some time, Agent Gibbs," Chiu said bleakly.

"Well, we will see if we can't figure it out, for this poor girl's sake," Ducky said intently. "And the sooner we get her back to autopsy, the better. It's awfully chilly out here today…" Ducky trailed off as he turned to help Palmer prepare the gurney.

Gibbs sighed, looking down at her.

"Really creepy, Boss." Tony had walked up beside him, and also looked down at her. He then jumped as McGee was squatting down next to the candles. "Don't blow them out McGee…you could disturb what may be on them."

Gibbs smiled to himself. Tony was quick, for having a few too many last night.

McGee looked startled and said ,"Okay, you're right but I don't happen to have a candle snuffer in my back pocket."

Tony gave him with a slightly annoyed look as he pinched the first flame off with his gloved fingers, ever so carefully, so that it would be the less contaminating to the evidence. "C'mon, McHamburgler, just do it quick-like and you won't get burned."

McGee frowned sourly, knowing this new nickname was going to be around for a while, but then did what he was told.

Ziva jogged over to Gibbs.

"She was found by a Mr. Behrens, who was walking his dog at 06:15 this morning. He called the police immediately and had no other information. He did not see anyone else or anything else of note." She was looking once more at the dead woman. "This is…strange yes ? Even for us Gibbs ?'

He sighed, knowing that he had a bad feeling about this one.

"Yeah. Even for us."


	4. Chapter 4

Tony moved around the Petty Officer's apartment slowly, gloved fingers opening and closing anything that could help them, while Ziva was staring at the book shelf in the living room.

"She had interesting taste in literature..." she stated, tilting her head, more to herself than Tony. "Satre. Tolstoy. Ninn…"

"Well," he grunted out while leaning down to open her kitchen cabinets," for someone on a Marine's salary, she managed to make this place look pretty nice. I mean, there's not a lot of stuff here but what there is, is nice." It reminded him a little of E.J.

Ziva nodded, not that he saw it, in agreement. "Hah," she said, amused.

"What?" he asked, picking his head up.

"She has the same wine rack I do. This little one here, with the glass top...Ray gave it to me."

"Well, C.I. Ray has good taste."

"Yes he does," she smiled, pleased at the comment,"he likes me."

"Oh…" he said while turning back to look at the fridgerator, which had a lot of papers stuck to it with magnets," I think he more than likes you, Ziva."

She was silent for a moment, her dark eyes a little wider, pausing before she continued looking through the living room.

"Do you like him Tony?"

He was surprised she asked him that question. But, since he usually teased her about the man, in addition to giving him the nickname, he guessed he shouldn't have been surprised.

He smiled a little, looking more closely at the papers on the fridge,"He's not really my type Ziva."

She snorted at him. "Do not be ridiculous. I simply want your opinion. Your _real _opinion. After Rivkin..." she turned to look at him now," I almost lost everything. Including you." She swallowed nervously after the last part.

The comment made him stop in his tracks for a moment. Aside her apology for not trusting him, they never talked about it. After they rescued her from that hellhole in Africa. His heart ached a little. He cleared his throat.

"Well, I think you can see, you didn't lose me. Actually, even when I thought you were dead, you didn't lose me. And, I think what's more important here, is that you like him. I guess from my perspective...no guy is ever gonna be good enough for you." He said it casually, but he really meant it. He cared about her deeply, and sometimes their friendship was more complex than anyone suspected.

She smiled, her eyes getting moist. She had expected his usual deflection antics. But lately, he had been surprising them all with little moments where the masks fell off. And he was real. But it never lasted long. So she wouldn't push it.

He pulled a magazine tear-out from D.C. Around Town from under a magnet, and placed in an evidence bag. He waved it at her.

She walked over and took it from him. Looking carefully at it, she said, "Nothing is circled on here…there are local events, night club acts, and restaurants…a lot of things."

"Well, you never know. One of these places could be a clue. There's really nothing else to help us here."

"I get the feeling she did not get around a lot."

He chuckled. "You mean, she didn't get out a lot."

"Well, that too. But she had no contraceptive products in her bathroom or bedroom."

He looked around the apartment one more time, getting ready to leave. "A shame…she was attractive…actually, she was pretty hot." He eyed a picture of her with a shaggy dog sitting beside her on the table that was next to the front door.

"_Tony,"_she rolled her eyes. Smiling because after all, he was still an ass.

He ignored her reaction. "I'm just saying, a beautiful woman, in her prime…not dating…must have been-"

"Sad ?"

"Lonely," he said softly. And then she understood.

"So…you have not dated since –"

"E.J., no." He said as they now walked down the steps of the apartment entrance. He turned for a moment, looking at Ziva, "I guess maybe I need to get back on the horse."

"Well, I do not know that I need to hear about the strange things you do with women-"

He laughed at her. "It's another expression, Ziva. When you ride a horse, and you fall off, you have to get right back on to conquer the fear."

"Oh. I see," she paused, thoughtfully at the passenger side of the car. "So…what is it you are afraid of ?"

He looked at her for a moment, and raised an eyebrow, "Well, it's not like I'm really afraid of dating…I mean, I've been around the block…"he was back pedaling. He caught her frown. "It's more like I…" He looked down for a moment, gathering his courage. "They get hurt. I hurt them." He looked back to her, green eyes pained.

She blinked. "I see," she said, taking in his sad expression. But then she suddenly got into the car, and he sighed, following suit a moment after. He turned the ignition.

She continued though, as he pulled away from the curb. "Every time one person gets involved with another," she said quietly," there is always a risk." She saw his mouth open to respond but cut him off. "I know, you blame yourself for hurting Jeanne Benoit, but you were following orders, and you got hurt yourself as well. And E.J., she knew the risks of the job, the danger that comes with being an agent. And, if she had not taken the microchip in the first place, she would likely still be alive. You need to let it go Tony. You deserve some happiness."

"Like you and Ray have ?", he asked in a lowered voice.

She nodded, dark ponytail bobbing behind her "Yes."

"Well," he said and took a breath,"I dunno Ziva. I'm not sure I'm comfortable with anyone keeping my nuts in a jar." He smiled at his own sarcasm.

She looked confused, sputtering,"Why – what do nuts have to do with-"

"Never mind." He smiled, glancing over to her. "I think you're right. But maybe this time I should stay away from hot chicks with guns."

Back at the Navy Yard, McGee felt Gibbs standing behind him, back from MTAC, before he heard the growl.

"McGee."

"Nothing unusual on the Petty Officer's financials, Boss. Cell phone records indicate she made three calls last Friday, and then there were no more. I'm guessing she was taken sometime after the last call."

Gibbs was silent. The icy blue stare bored into him. McGee wondered, did it actually, really burn ? Yes, a little. Yes it did.

"**Right**. So, she may have been taken that day or sometime over the weekend. Her calls were to her parents, one to a Rachel Lewis, and one to St. Mary's Hospital, where it got lost at the switchboard…so I didn't get more on that one. Rachel Lewis lives here in D.C., though."

Gibbs nodded,"Okay. Call Tony and Ziva. Once they're done interviewing the C.O., I want them at that address, and then the parents' house last. Tell them to be aware of any medical reasons she may have to be in contact with 's."

McGee turned immediately and picked up his phone. He saw Agents Dillon and Chiu walk in as Tony's cell rang.

"_Whassup McHamburglar ?"_

"Do we really have to-" McGee's hiss was cut off.

"_Yes. McGee, Hamburger phone King, we do. It was a Hamburger phone, for God's sake. What do you expect me to do with that ? You know, between that and the Star Wars boxers, I can imagine the hot night you're gonna have with some unsuspecting girl."_

He sighed. And didn't give Tony the satisfaction of a response.

"The Boss wants you to add someone on your list for interview," as he was about to continue, he saw the two FBI agents nod to Gibbs and walk off towards the elevators. How did he get rid of them already ?

"_Yes McGee ?" Tony said impatiently._

"Oh, ah, Rachel Lewis, 224 Frances Boulevard. After the C.O., and the Petty Officer's parents last. She may have had a medical condition, but we aren't certain due to a call to St. Mary's Hospital."

"_We already covered the C.O., and he said McKenna was responsible, punctual, excelled in all her assignments. But a bit anti-social. Several officers asked her out, but she turned them down. No one seemed extraordinarily put out by that. No known problems or enemies. And the apartment didn't turn up much of anything. There were no meds either, aside OTC drugs. No sign of struggle or forced entry."_

"Okay. I'll tell Gibbs."

"_Later, McHamburglar."_

He scowled and hung up the phone. Then he repeated al the information to Gibbs. The curiosity got the better of him, though. SO he had to ask.

"Uh, so Boss, what did you tell Agents Chiu and Dillon to do ?"

"To search the Petty officer's apartment, McGee. Why, did you have something for them to do ?" The acid glare was there again.

"No. But, ah – Tony and Ziva already did that."

"Yeah, McGee. But they don't know that." Gibbs let a little smile play across his lips before turning to go down to autopsy.

Ducky was washing up and Palmer was closing up the body when Gibbs walked in.

"Hello Jethro. I was just about to call you down, but I see once again, you beat me to it."

Gibbs stood next to the body on the table, watching Palmer as Ducky walked over to join them.

The dead woman looked even more blue tinted, and drawn under the harsh lights of the autopsy suite. Palmer was almost through the last few stitches.

"Tell me," Gibbs said succinctly.

Ducky looked from Gibbs to the cadaver. He took a deep breath in.

"Well, based on the condition of her organs at the time of death, we were able to establish that her blood was removed slowly, over several days. Not all at once. The blue tint you see, is from a combination of the lack of blood plus the effect of the toxins in her blood causing a reduction in respiration. And due to the minimal damage to the ankles, wrists, and neck, she was too overcome by those substances in her system to struggle very much. She was bound by those areas to a flat surface of some kind, with a common use type of rope…" He stopped, thinking.

"Duck?"

"Well, we sent samples of her blood to Abby for analysis, so I'm waiting on those, but, I suspect between the initial bite," he pointed to the now black-purplish puncture marks, "and these,"he pointed to the angry black and blue mottled needle marks on her arms,"she may have suffered some neurological effects from the venom that not only reduced respiration, but kept her in a state of paralysis." He looked at Gibbs, distress showing clearly in his eyes.

Gibbs frowned. "Does that mean-"

"There's a good chance she _knew_ what was happening to her the whole time, but couldn't do anything about it even if she wasn't tied down," Palmer finished grimly, as he tied off the last suture.

"Once I see the results from Abby, we will get a more definite picture, but for now, I can say safely that this girl was kept alive for several days, and the blood periodically taken. She would have bled a bit more quickly and easily, since snake venom alters the viscosity of human blood, making it thinner. That explains all the bruising around the needle marks. I can place time of death at approximately 16:30 yesterday evening…"he paused again, as Gibbs waited quietly. "There was no evidence of sexual assault. And no evidence of a struggle beyond the bit of abrasion caused by the ropes. Aside the hair on her head, she was clean shaven, head to toe, and the body covered in an oily substance of some kind, also being analyzed by Abby."

Gibbs said thoughtfully, "Fornell's people told us they think the cleaning was done post-mortem, to get rid of any evidence left behind."

"Oh, no, I disagree, Jethro. Based on the very subtle hair re-growth, and variation in distribution of the oil present on the skin, I'd say this was done first, possibly before any blood was taken. No, I don't think it was done to hide evidence. I think it was a ritual cleansing of some kind."

"You think this is some kind of religious maniac, or _cult,_ Duck?"

"Maybe. Certainly the use of the snake, which is a mystical symbol in many spiritual systems, the cleansing, the bloodletting, and the careful, almost reverent treatment of the body after death…all seem to point to some kind of beliefs at play, a statement, at the least. This had nothing to do with a sexual assault, it was not motivated by hatred, and the killer or killers intimately signed their work with this little token," he pointed at the symbol inscribed on the woman's throat, "which by the way is not just for "infinity" but also can represent the Orobouros, or giant snake, that eats its own tail, a symbol of life and death in a never ending cycle. It's a home tattoo, given to her near or at the moment of death, based on the minimal amount of bleeding."

Ducky paused another moment, watching Palmer cover the body up, prepping her for the drawer.

"What that poor girl went through… I hope you get this one soon, Jethro. This was… a chilling, and a cruel death."

"I hope so too, Duck." He left autopsy, wondering why after all these years, the cold in the autopsy suite had never gotten to him until today.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N : **Please forgive the reloads on the other chapters. I sort of flew through them too quickly and had to repair a few oopses. Disregard them if you read already – you got the gist.

Ziva and Tony got back to the office in time to see Chiu and Dillon being sent home for the night by Gibbs. They didn't look happy and scowled at the two N.C.I.S. agents as they passed by.

"Hey guys. See you tomorrow, I guess," Tony said innocently. Ziva smirked.

As they put their bags down, Gibbs approached them. "Sit rep."

"My day was awesome Boss! How was yours? Dillion and Chiu crack open the case while we were gone? " Tony couldn't help himself.

Gibbs looked at him, a slight scowl on his face. "DiNozzo, we just got all the files on the previous victims. I was gonna get a head start tonight before you all review in the morning but maybe you'd like to stay tonight and do it instead ?"

"Ahhhh...right. So, Rachel Lewis was a college friend of our Petty Officer. She said McKenna was very choosey about who she hung around with. A little shy actually. They were tight for a long time, and she was the only friend McKenna saw on a regular basis. They met up every week for dinner when she was stateside. No mention of a new boyfriend, or anything out of the ordinary. They last saw each other on Monday night last week. She said they talked on Friday afternoon, about getting together for dinner again Monday, but nothing else unusual." Tony held up the magazine tear in the evidence bag. "This was maybe nothing, maybe something, from the Petty Officer's apartment. Otherwise, it didn't turn up a thing."

Gibbs eyed it for a moment and then gave a slight nod. "Parents? " Gibbs grunted, as he walked over to his own desk, and Ziva followed him.

She stopped in front of it. "The parents had been notified by the LEOs earlier, but were still very upset. They spoke to us but said the same things her CO and friend said. They are really still in shock, Gibbs. It may be a good idea to try again tomorrow."

Gibbs nodded in agreement.

"Okay," Gibbs said to all three of them, as McGee looked up as well. "We have a lot of information to go through, so for tonight, I want you to review Ducky's Autopsy report, and Abby just called before you two got back, so let's go see what she's got. Then we start here at 06:00 tomorrow."

Tony groaned.

"_**Problem,**_ DiNozzo? Because like I said, you can stay and go through it for us tonight." Gibbs glared at him. Not a trace of humor in it.

"Ah, no Boss. 06:00. No problem. Bright and early." Tony got up and left the Around Town D.C. page he took of McKenna's fridge on his desk.

As Gibbs turned to the elevators, Tony looked at Ziva and then McGee, who both shrugged, not knowing why Gibbs seemed a little extra cranky. They scurried after him.

Abby's lab was literally vibrating with music when they arrived.

Gibbs placed the usual Caf-Pow offering in front of her. She considerately turned down the volume. She took the large cup and smiled, taking a sip. The skulls on her boot tops staring up at them all.

"Ahhh, thank you, Bossman. I was showing signs of wilting. You know. I have that slump around 6 pm, and I start to get tired and -"

"Abby," he warned. They all cringed a little.

"Ooooh, she frowned at him, "don't have a hissy fit. Get it? Hisssssssy fit? "

Tony smiled a little, but didn't dare make a sound.

"ABBY." This time Gibbs sounded really pissed.

She turned to her computer screen. There was a fully hooded cobra on it. "Meet _Ophiophagus Hannah_, or more commonly know as the King Cobra. Averaging 3 to 4 meters, it is commonly found in India and Southeast Asia. The venom of this snake is delivered by two short, fixed fangs in the front of the mouth which channel venom into the prey like hypodermic needles. The venom primarily consists of neurotoxins, but also other compounds which are considered cardiotoxic. So it can suppress the nervous system of it's victim, slowing all body processes, and even stop the heart if enough venom is delivered at once."

"And this was the snake that bit our Petty Officer? " Ziva asked.

"Yes. And also, it's the same venom she was injected with, in small doses…over several days. There were also had traces of Rohypnol in her system, possibly given to her in an alcoholic drink. There was also MDMA in traces, delivered with the venom-"

"Ecstasy ?" Tony said confused. "Why would –"

"Perhaps to keep the victims calm…or from feeling bad, in a way…since it produces profoundly positive feelings, empathy for others, elimination of anxiety, and extreme relaxation…but, not really with the venom. It would more likely add to a very bad trip."

Abby continued, "Likely she had a drink, and someone slipped the Rohypnol into it...She was then abducted by our killer, who, very disturbingly sicked our scaly friend Nagaini on her."

Ziva raised her eyebrows, "Nagaini ?"

McGee asked gently, "You never saw Rikki Tikki Tavi, Ziva ?"

"Is he new on the most wanted upstairs ?" she asked, not knowing what he was talking about.

"Later," Gibbs growled.

Abby was motioning with her hands while she spoke, "The venom delivery of the bite would not likely be an amount to kill her, the wounds she has indicate a smaller size and venom delivery varies anyway from snake to snake."

"So...she was bitten, and then what would have happened? "Tony asked, almost hesitantly.

Gibbs shifted a little. He remembered the team didn't have the grim picture of the Petty Officer's suffering yet. They hadn't seen Ducky's report. All of this gruesome detail was new to them. He shook his head to himself, knowing it was going to be just as disturbing hearing it for the second time.

"Well," Abby turned, "for just the one bite...a number of things. Dizziness, grogginess, a sense of euphoria, sleepiness, shallow respiration and slowing of body processes as the venom acts as a paralytic...but it would not likely paralyze on its own..." she paused, looking back at the screen and pulling up the autopsy picture of the needle marks on the victims left arm. "But with more venom injected...paralyisis would have happened for sure, along with trouble breathing. She would only have lost consciousness if she went into anaphylaxis. Which she didn't. So...she was immobilized, seeing and hearing what was happening-"

"That's _horrible_," McGee said sadly.

"Yeah it is. And the needle marks are from both the injections and when her blood was taken out. The bruising was excessive around the marks once the venom started to affect the blood chemistry. It acts as a blood thinner."

"Ugh," Tony uttered, "So taking the blood was easy. And they did it repeatedly…"

"According to Ducky," Gibbs said softly, "they did it over a few days, until her organs started shutting down and she died."

This was too horrific. They were all silent for a moment.

"What about that smell? " Ziva asked Abby. "She smelled like incense."

"Yes." Abby walked over and patted Major Mass Spec. "We figured out the components of the oil the killer applied to her skin...probably right after the initial snakebite. She was weak from the Rohypnol, and then the first dose of venom cocktail...then the killer shaved her body clean, and applied this formula. I've identified it as a traditional Egyptian ritual oil called Kyphi. Kyphi oil is an ancient oil dedicated to the Goddess Isis. It has a number of ingredients, mostly essential oils of Frankincense, Benzoin, Myrrh, Cedar, Cinnamon, Juniper, Cypress, Copal, and sometimes other things like fruit and honey"…

"So...what, this is some kind of religious or cult killing? " Tony asked her, while Gibbs mused to himself how much he and Tony thought alike sometimes.

Abby looked at them. "Well...yes I would think so. Only...I have done some looking into it today...and there are other factors that make it hard to pinpoint this exactly in regard to philosophy behind it. The taking of the blood could relate to some Egyptian gods...like the lion headed goddess Sekmet. It was part of her lore that she drank blood..."

They were all horrified. And now knew the source of Gibbs' anger.

"Someone...may have drank her blood? "Ziva asked, a little tremble in her words. Terrorists she could handle. Thieves, murderers, could handle. This? This was...vile.

"Maybe?" Abby said, raising her eyebrows. "I don't know what was done with it once removed. But, anyway, there are inconsistencies with the elements of this whole thing that are not Egyptian. The symbol on her neck"

"Orobouros." Gibbs said plainly.

"Yes ! Very Good Gibbs !" She smiled at him as the others looked at him wondering how he got that.

Tony pretended to cough the word "Ducky!" into his hand and instantly yelped from Gibbs' headsmack.

Abby again turned to change her screen to show the very old looking illustration of a snake, in a large circle, eating its own tail.

"The Orobouros is an ancient Greek alchemical symbol of a serpent eating his tail. The symbol has also been interpreted as the unity of sacrificer and sacrificed, relating to the symbolism of the mystical life. It is also a a symbol of eternity and immortality."

"What about the candles and flowers, the white roses? " McGee asked her, thinking ahead.

"That's another inconsistency, and those elements are more Christianity based...the white candles and roses could represent purity, spiritual love, they can symbolize new beginnings, or be a sign of farewell. Its a strange combination of things."

Gibbs turned to the table with the mentioned candles and roses on it. "Anything off these Abs? "

She shook her head, "Nothing. And I mean nothing, Gibbs. Not a hair, or a print. What I did find though was this." She turned and changed the monitor picture again.

A magnified image of two red fibers came up. "These are carpet fibers, acrylic, and I found them on the vinyl sheet she was placed on. Her clothes were immaculately cleaned. The roses, candles, vinyl...all very commonly found in every town in several stores. Her neck, wrists, ankles showed some minor rope abrasions, but no fibers found."

She leaned back now, looking at them. "This was extremely clean. And extremely scary."

Their minds were spinning with all the dark facts.

Later, when they were done reviewing Ducky's report, they started packing up at their desks for the night. Except Gibbs. Who was already perusing all the F.B.I. reports.

McGee seemed to be moving slowly, and just sat at his desk playing with a pencil.

"You okay, Tim? " Tony asked gently walking over to him, while Gibbs looked on and Ziva shot them a glance while pulling on her coat.

McGee looked up at Tony, knowing he must have been worried to use his first name. "Yeah...its just...they tortured her. Days like that. It must have been ..."he swallowed compulsively. "I never understand these things..."

Ziva walked over to them. "Neither do I, McGee." She gave him an understanding look. "But we will catch him. And put a stop to it." There was no doubt in her tone.

McGee nodded.

"Go home," Gibbs said, a little hoarse. It had been a long day. "Tomorrow you need to be on you game."

"Gnite Boss! " Tony said walking back to grab his things. "C'mon, McGee, let's go grab a burger." He looked at McGee, smiling. The Probie stared at him for a moment, wondering what had happened to his new nickname. "What? I can't use it in the same sentence with hamburger. Just wouldn't roll off the tongue..."

McGee sighed. And then smiled. "Okay, Tony. But can we just have the meal with no nicknames for tonight?"

"Now, you're pushing it..."

Ziva chuckled, and they all left, going on like that until he heard the elevator doors close. Gibbs finally smiled a little to himself, but then his expression changed, as he looked down at the file open before him, of another victim from two months previous, dead and pale, surrounded by candles and white roses.


	6. Chapter 6

_He was in a dark alley. It was __**that**__ alley, again…_

_Ambient street light filtered through the mist that was swirling around at his feet, limiting his vision. He had his sig drawn...approaching a corner slowly...he could hear a murmur...a familiar voice...female... and as he carefully turned the corner, he called her name._

"_E.J.-"_

_She was standing, talking to Cade. She didn't hear him. _

_He tried again. _

"_E.J. !"_

_And then just beyond her he saw Stratton. His heart started to pound in his ears._

_He took a step and screamed at her now._

"_**E.J. look out**__ !"_

_Stratton had his gun raised._

_Then he saw it, coiled at his feet._

_A large black cobra, head raised up, hood spread wide, poised to strike. _

_He hesitated one moment too long._

_He heard the first shot, and saw Cade go down in the corner of his eye. He was desperately trying to be still, but, E.J. screamed and he couldn't help himself but raise his gun..._

_The cobra struck at the same time as Stratton shot his gun at E.J., and as the bullet tore through her, he felt the blinding pain of the fangs stabbing into his leg and screamed._

He sat up in bed, scream dying in his throat. His heart still pounding, drenched in sweat.

"Goddammit !" Tony growled out to himself, running his hands through his hair. He took a few deep, shaking breaths to calm himself. He looked at the clock. 04:00. "Ohh dark hundred," he muttered to himself. "Great."

He took an extra hot shower, trying to shake the chill of the nightmare off. By the time he had dressed and got into the car, the dream had faded back to a distant echo.

He stopped at the coffee house near the Navy Yard. It always amazed him so many people were on line at that hour. He played with his cuff a little, aimlessly, while he waited.

There was a sudden scattering of change near his feet, and heard a soft "Crap," behind him.

He stooped to collect the random coins. And then he noticed.

Black high heeled boots, trailing up shapely calves. He stood up slowly, taking in the details. She was wearing a skirt suit, with what looked to be a fox fur collar. The skirt and jacket were fitted, clinging to her slightly exaggerated hourglass form. Her skin was like cream against the dark mass of wavy hair that spilled over the collar and down her back. Dark, arched eyebrows and long lashes drifting over large hazel eyes. Her full lips were a blush pink color. She was tall, and solid, not at all like the little women he normally ended up attracted to. She was stunning, and reminded him of a pin up girl...

He was confused by the hand she held out toward him.

Then,"Oh, sorry, here you go," he put the change in her hand. He felt himself getting warmer under his collar, hoping she hadn't noticed him gawking.

She chuckled. "No problem," she said in a smooth, almost low purr.

He smiled at her. "Ah, I think you dropped almost as much as a cup of coffee costs here."

"Yeah," she smiled, looking into his eyes. "I think it may have been even more than that. Maybe my parking meter money as well. So thank you, my hero." Her voice was a lower, rich tone, a little deeper than Ziva's, as he thought this could be her taller, shaplier, and paler sister.

There was an uncomfortable pause, and he suddenly felt stupid. _C'mon,DiNozzo, how many women have you talked to?_ Something about her threw him off. She was beautiful...but it was something else.

"Can I thank you by buying you coffee?" she asked, almost shyly, looking down and then up to his face again.

"Sure," he gave her his best smile, "but I'm thinking maybe you could do it sometime later, when we could sit down with it and chat?"

She hesitated for a moment. And then she beamed at him as well, "Okay, I can give you my card, and you can give me a call when you think you're up for a coffee break." She opened her purse and took out a business card. She handed it to him, and he could smell her perfume. It was something floral, but exotic. She was...like ripe fruit. All of her, her shape, her pouty lips, and fantastic scent.

He must have been distracted again because she startled him back to attention by saying, " You're damned handsome."

He was surprised, and then laughed when he realized what was so sexy about her besides her looks. The air of _confidence_. She had only played coy when she asked to buy him coffee. "You're not so bad yourself," he said, almost with affection for this woman he knew nothing about.

"Next !" the cashier called from the register.

"Well, I better..." he motioned to the counter, "my Boss will kill me if I'm late..." he looked at the name on the card. "I will call you later, Miranda."

"Okay..."she raised an eyebrow.

"Tony," he shook her hand, which felt soft and warm."Tony DiNozzo."

When Tony got to the office, Ziva and McGee were already there, looking through the copies of the files Gibbs had made them all.

Gibbs was in fresh clothing, and looked perfectly fine. Another mystery they had yet to solve about his seemingly superhuman powers.

"Good morning !" Ziva practically sang it.

"Show off," he muttered to her as he threw down his pack and took his seat. She was so torturously perky in the morning. "Morning Boss, McGee." Both men grumbled their good mornings. McGee looked even worse for wear than Tony. He was not a morning person either. Bu then again, this was still practically last night, wasn't it ?

As he opened the folder and sipped his coffee carefully, and then smiled to himself thinking about the business card in his pocket.

It was silent for almost two and a half hours as they all read up. The only one that got up was Gibbs, who went out and kindly bought them all fresh coffee and some breakfast. He was a hardass, but always looked after them too.

The office was busier now, and they heard the elevator. Looking up, Tony saw Fornell, scowling, flanked by Chiu and Dillon.

"**This **is gonna' be interesting," he said out loud. Ziva and McGee looked up.

Fornell strolled up to Tony's desk, not seeing Gibbs, and stopped with a rustle of his raincoat.

"DiNutso. Nice to see you."

"Fornell. Nice to see you too with your…entourage. Very fashionable nowadays to have those. And you guys didn't all wear your sunglasses up. I thought that would be part of the look." He heard Ziva snort.

Fornell sighed, giving him a glare. "Where is Gibbs ?"

"Right here, Tobias." Gibbs strolled into the bullpen before Tony could respond.

Fornell was on him immediately. "We need to talk. **Now**. I have two highly trained Agents who are to be working on this case with you in a more immediate capacity. I thought we had a clear understanding of this situation ?"

Gibbs was unruffled by the angry undercurrent. "Care to step into my office?" Gibbs asked with a slight smile.

Fornell followed him into the elevator.

Chiu and Dillon loitered uncomfortably. Dillon paced and ended up leaning against the edge of Tony's cubicle wall. And Chiu just said, "Great,"as he slowly paced the bull pen.

"Ah, don't worry guys," Tony said with a smile. "They usually some to some kind of agreement before blood is spilled." As he said it, he felt the small twist of irony, looking at one of the Snakebite Killer's victims in the file in front of him.

Chiu ignored the comment, turning to Tony. "DiNozzo, you guys find anything different about this case as opposed to the others ?"

He liked that, so far about Chiu. No bullshit. And Tony knew that Fornell would impose more of an active roll for his agents anyway. Gibbs couldn't put them off forever.

Ziva and Tim looked on as he spoke. "No, not really, aside from a few things so far. First, the vics were ritually cleansed _before_ the venom injections and blood taken. Second, we have red carpet fibers on the vinyl drop cloth. Third, we identified the ritual oil as Kyphi, which is Egyptian."

Chiu nodded while Dillon looked on silently. Dillon could be very menacing...if not for the Chewbacca stature. He was a somewhat ugly man with a large, crooked nose and small brown eyes…but his size was so over the top. He had a Lurch quality Tony had to almost smile at, though he's rather never get into a tangle with the man. He and Chiu were quite the odd couple. _Chiu and Chewie_, he thought to himself.

"Anything to note on the vic's behavior or acquaintences ?"

Tony sighed. "No, not really. And from what I see here…nothing really links these victims together. The only thing I've noticed, is-"

"The order." Gibbs said, returning with Fornell. Both looked smug. As if sharing a private joke. "Okay, we know the victims have alternated so far…female to male. All between the ages of 25 and 38. No rhyme or reason there. But looking at them –"

"They are all very nice looking," Ziva observed, and then realized what she said, and smiled coquettishly.

"Yes…"Gibbs said, "I suppose. They have various economic situations, all single, all lived within 300 miles of D.C. and all were found in either Anacostia or Rock Creek Park. After that, these people have no obvious connection, all respect to the F.B.I." He nodded to the Agents, "They were very thorough, but I want you to go over it all with a fine tooth comb. There has to be something. The time between victims is shortening. So we're working against the clock. We may only have a few weeks at best."

"What do you want my men on, Gibbs ?" Fornell jumped in, making sure they were included.

"Chiu and Dillon – get a more thorough statement from McKenna's parents. They were out of sorts yesterday when Tony and Ziva questioned them. Then go back to the C.O. as well, just to make sure everything he said corroborates with his previous statement." They both nodded and walked away towards the elevators.

Fornell didn't move. "You want somethin' to do too, Fornell ?" Gibbs asked, impatiently.

"No, Gibbs. I'm just gonna hang out for an hour or so before I have to go." He smiled at Gibbs.

"Uh-huh," he said, frowning at the man. Then he turned to his team. "McGee – all phone and communications records. Tony all financials. Ziva, review all the witness statements from the people who found the bodies. Look for anything that doesn't add up." No one spoke but turned to the monumental tasks in front of them.

Another three hours later, they were ready for a break. "Lunch." Gibbs barked. "Not all at once." As if they didn't know it by now.

"I'm in the middle of something, so I'll stay first." McGee was holding his hand over the phone receiver and went right back to his call.

"Okay," Ziva said serenely,"That leaves us, Tony." She looked over at him, while he was smiling and looking at a business card in his hand. "What do you have there ?" she asked.

He looked up at her, green eyes holding a sparkle she hadn't seen in him in a while. "Is that a phone number of a woman?"

"Why yes, Ziva, it is."

"Where did you meet her ?"

"At the coffee house."

"Oh. Well, I suppose she is some leggy blonde ?"

"No. As a matter of fact…she's more of an…exotic beauty," he said, picking up his phone to call her.

"_Miranda Bianchi."_

"Hi, Miranda, it's Tony from this morning." He felt his palms getting clammy.

"_Oh, hi there !" _She said warmly, as if the were old friends.

"I was wondering…I dunno if you made plans already, if you want to have a quick coffee or a bite ?"

"_Sure ! I'd love to. But, I'm not in the area, I'm working with a client down by Dupont Circle. If you can make it an hour from now I can finish up here and meet you before my next one."_

He looked at her card. Miranda Bianchi, Art Therapist for Children, L.S.W. _If she could deal with kids, she could probably deal with me_, he thought humorously.

"Sure. I can do that. Same place as this morning, about 2 ?"

"_Great ! I'm looking forward to getting to know more about you,"_ she said very sweetly.

"Same here." They said goodbye and hung up. Then he looked at Ziva imploringly.

"Yes, yes, I'll go now and you go at 2." She said it with a little smile, glad Tony was going on a date. Though, it bothered her just a little. Who was this woman? Tony needed a break. From heartache. She would need to investigate later if he continued seeing her.

"Thanks." He smiled back at her."You okay with that McHamburglar?" he asked, turning to McGee.

The eyeroll was so satisfying. "Fine," he muttered while dialing to make another phone call.


	7. Chapter 7

He felt the bubble of excitement walking into the coffee house. He was grateful to feel it again after being pretty much a monk for so long. Had he really not had a date in months ?

She was there. In the skirt suit and boots.

As he approached her, she looked up at him from her seat at the little table and smiled. She put down the book she was reading. "Hi!"

"Hello there," he said pulling up a chair. "Did you get something to eat?" He saw she had coffee already.

"No, I was waiting for you," her hazel eyes looked almost green in the café' lights. Her dark hair had a satin-like sheen to it. He wondered how it would feel if he touched it.

"That was very nice of you," he said, then looked at the book she was reading. "The Creative Intervention…"

"Ah…yeah, sorry – even when I'm not working, I'm working." She shrugged and tossed her dark mane back, giving him a whiff of her delicious perfume again.

"Driven. I like that. So, you're an Art Therapist for Kids ? Is that something you always wanted to do ?" He jumped right in to the conversation. He must have seemed nervous. For some reason he felt a bit out of sorts again. What was it about her ?

She smiled and looked down for just a moment. "Well, no. I originally went to school to become a Pediatrician. It was my father's idea." Her expression changed a little. "He and I had different ideas on what I should be doing…I liked music, and art, and psychology. He thought they were all bad ideas, and I'd end up in the gutter if I did any of them for a living."

He sat back, eyes widened, a little shocked to hear the very same thing his father had told him, when he decided to be a cop. "And that must have been difficult," he said with true sincerity.

"You know," she said, tilting her head slightly, "I think he was just trying to protect me in his own way. But we didn't get along so well, and less after I dropped out of pre-med. He sort of... cut me off at that point, and I had to make my own way through school to become a Psychologist. And I minored in Art Therapy, so, there it is." She was absently twirling the end of one of her locks in her fingers.

"I didn't mean to get us off to such a serious start," he said apologetically.

"Oh no, it's fine. Everyone deals with things differently, and when you're getting to know someone, I think it's good to dive in."

'Hmm. Okay." He paused for a moment. And decided to try being uncharacteristically open. "My dad very similarly, got angry with my career choice and cut me off. Though, we are starting to get along a little better….on the rare occasions I see him…"

She gave him a sympathetic look. "Do you get along with your mom ?"

"She died when I was a kid," he said plainly, "so, it's just he and I."

She shook her head, and smiled a little bitterly. "You know, you and I have some pretty strange things in common here. My mom died as well but when I was a teenager. And more recently, my dad too."

He found himself touching her hands a little, offering sympathy, but mostly wanting just to touch her.

"I'm really sorry." He said it quietly. And they paused for just a bit.

'Okay," he sat back. "Now that I've managed to kill this date with a hatchet, how can we get onto a happier note ?"

"Easy," she grinned suddenly. "Just tell me how pretty you think I am."

He laughed and shook his head. "You are a character, aren't you?"

"So I've been told…"she said. "let's see, how about lets get back to basics. I'm 32, As you know I'm an Art Therapist and work with kids, I do work for clients out of home but sometimes work out of my office. I have an apartment here in D.C., and a cabin up in the Blue Ridge Mountains that used to belong to my parents. I have no cats, and no dogs. I'm super allergic to both. I have lots of hobbies. And enjoy sharing them."

That last line had him hooked. "And, what kind of hobbies do you like to share?"

She laughed softly. "I like music, I play violin, I dabble in art as well, and have even had a few shows. I enjoy cooking, and good wine, and especially, good sex."

Suddenly with that it felt too warm in the coffee house. "Ah…"

"Oh, Tony, come on." It was like she knew him for years. "We're both intelligent adults. I'm a woman, not a little girl."

"I ah, noticed that." He was not used to women being so blunt. At least not in this kind of situation. It was a little bit of a conflict. She was very smart, and interesting. He wanted to find out more about her…not just look for sex. But that last part had him reeling, already mentally undressing her_. Damn._

"How about," she raised one of her lovely arched eyebrows,"you tell me about Tony now."

"Oh, okay. Good idea," he laughed a little nervously. Wasn't he usually on the other end of these kinds of conversations? "I'm 43, I also have an apartment in D.C., no pets, and I'm an N.C.I.S. Agent." He looked at her and paused, waiting to see if she knew what that meant or had a problem with it.

"I know what that means. I've seen you guys on the news sometimes. Guess that means you carry a gun?"

"Yep. And a badge. And we chase bad guys. And it can be dangerous."

She nodded and frowned a bit, looking down.

"What?" he asked gently.

"Nothing…I…feel a little worried about you already."

Adorable. He smiled at her. "Oh, I can take care of myself. No worries." Suddenly he sat up. "You don't by any chance, carry a gun yourself do you?"

"No. I always wanted to learn how to shoot though. Maybe you could teach me?" she asked very sweetly.

"Not on your life," he said warmly.

They kept talking until he realized he was going to be 40 minutes late and Gibbs was going to kill him. And rightfully so. He let himself get too carried away in the conversation.

They never got around to eating, but promised each other an actual dinner date. And he kissed her goodbye, chastely at first on the cheek. But she pulled him back as he turned to leave and gave him a full kiss on the lips. They were so soft…her lips tasted like fresh peaches to him.

He thought about that kiss all the way back to the office.


	8. Chapter 8

"How do you get your hands on a King Cobra snake anyhow? " Ziva asked the question.

They were all standing at the monitor in the bullpen, reviewing some of the background information on the Snakebite Killer's other victims.

Chiu and Dillon had been working steadily with them over the past week, as the information was truly overwhelming. But, they were all seasoned professionals, and though Dillon was a functioning mute, Chiu proved often to be helpful.

"It's the same as other illegal animals, big cats, large reptiles, snakes…people seem to find a way to smuggle them into the country and sell them through subverted channels. We found three suppliers of exotic reptiles, but none of them had any pertinent leads. It could be they have had the snake or snakes for some time – a few years, or they're second generation…" Chiu was thinking, trying to grasp at anything they hadn't covered.

"Boss…what if we…come across one of these things?" McGee asked, a little nervously.

"Don't tell me an Agent of mine is afraid of a little snake?" Gibbs said evenly, but with a slight curve of his lips.

"Well…I mean what if one of us ended up getting bitten?"

"That is being handled, Timothy," Ducky appeared suddenly behind them in the bullpen.

"Gibbs' power of stealth is rubbing off on you, Duck." Tony said with a wry smile.

"Oh no, my dear Anthony. Don't be ridiculous. It is I who rubbed of on him." Gibbs frowned, and they all found it amusing. "I just got off the telephone with Miami Dade Hospital, since they are the only establishment in the country that warehouses a variety of anti-venom kits. If a person should be bitten by a poisonous exotic snake, or even in some cases a domestic species, the results can be deadly without help to stop the effect of the venom. Of course, the anti-venom is more readily available in countries with a larger population of the original species."

"Well, that's a relief. I guess," said McGee.

"Oh yes. I ordered several kits, just in case the need arises."

"That's good thinking, Duck," Gibbs said, quietly. He still had a terrible feeling that would not let go of his gut. The news of the kits helped marginally.

"Yes, Jethro, I thought it prudent to be a step ahead. We also made sure to recheck our oxygen tank and saline bags. Though, I hope we can stop it from happening again." Ducky nodded and left the bullpen.

"That's a comforting thought, one of us getting nailed by a cobra," Tony scowled. "This case is already giving me nightmares…" he said it more to himself, but then realized they were all looking at him. "What? I really hate snakes."

"Just like Indiana Jones !" Ziva jumped, excited she was able to make the movie reference.

"Exactly!" Tony exclaimed, laughing at her. McGee was grinning at Ziva's delight.

"Okay, if you two are done," Gibbs' tone warned. "What else have we got so far?"

Tony took the remote and pulled up credit card statements on several of the victims. "Boss, the only thing I can see so far from the financial records is that John Achambault, Rebecca Glen, and Sarah Hess all at some point had visited the restaurant alley area in D.C., a few weeks before they were found dead. Never the same places though. But maybe there's a connection."

"Find it. Take Agent Chiu, when we're done here, and see if anyone remembers the victims."

Chiu knew they had already covered some of that ground if not all, but remained silent knowing Gibbs would only tell them to check it again.

"McGee."

"Boss, there was one thing I found with the phone records of all of the victims. The day they all disappeared, one of the calls they made was to 's."

"Medical records?"

"None, including our Petty Officer had any doctors they were seeing at 's, or even any serious conditions to seek treatment for. They were all young and in good health."

"Someone at that Hospital, either knows our killer, or is our killer." Gibbs was itching to get a solid lead.

"The problem with St. Mary's…it's a huge medical center, and once the calls went into the switchboard-"

"They got lost. Yes, McGee. I know. "

"We kept getting close…but the trail never solidified from any angle we took…" Chiu said, staring at the pictures of the five victims, now on the screen. He looked angry, and sad, jaw muscles working just a bit.

"It's a tough case, Agent Chiu. But we're gonna' get this sonofabitch," Gibbs said softly. He understood what it was like to chase after one of these psychos too long, after they took other victims…you had to keep from going down the rabbit hole with them.

"Ziva."

"So far, all of the statements are corroborating with their originals. I'm going to see the Archambaults this afternoon," she said, sighing. It was unpleasant, asking grieving parents to go over details of their children's lives, months after their murders.

"Take Dillon with you again," Gibbs ordered. And then, "Go."

Tony left with Chiu, but his mind was on the date he had planned with Miranda. He thought about her in between the casework, the reviews of the victims' records, and staring at the autopsy photos of fang marks and needle tracks. She was definitely a bright spot.

He and Agent Chiu spent a lot of time questioning the owners of several restaurants. None of them had recollection of the victims who'd eaten at their establishments. They were trendy, busy places, and it was not surprising no one could place the faces of the victims, even when they flashed the photographs.

In the car, Chiu sighed next to Tony. "Same as before. And this bastard is still walking around, free."

Tony understood. But as he drove back to the Navy Yard, he said, "You've been hitting walls for a while, but we're close. Gibbs told you we're gonna' get him. And Gibbs is never wrong."

"Agent Gibbs seems like he means business. And you have a good team. Honestly, we needed the help." He paused a bit. "You seem to trust Gibbs. You seem pretty tight."

"Yeah… we're friends, too. I mean, we've been working together for years. You really could say, we're family, all of us."

Chiu nodded. "That's good. Dillon is a good partner. He's a dead shot. And I don't know…if he's brave or stupid but, he's got balls of steel. Fearless. Just not very…"

"Talkative? Yeah, I noticed." Tony chuckled. He found himself liking Agent Chiu more every day. Which went against his policy of normally hating the Feeb's.

Well, it seemed like he was rethinking lots of things.

Miranda had called him earlier to confirm their dinner date.

"_So…."_she said in her rich and breathy voice_, "are you looking forward to tonight?"_

"I sure am," he said, almost purring himself. Ziva was eyeing him from her desk, trying to look busy... eavesdropping.

"_I was thinking, there's a cute place right on Madison Court. It's called Monty's. It's a steak place, but a little more pookie-sheeky."_

His brows came together as he repeated,"Pookie-sheeky ?"

She laughed. _"Yes, that's my sophisticated term for upscale."_

"Ah," he said, smiling. "So, no monkey-suit tonight? Cos' you know, that always impresses the ladies. And it comes with a banana." Ziva rolled her eyes.

"_No,"_ she giggled_, "Just your usual is fine. Whatever that is. And, make sure you can stay out late. I'm going to want dessert."_

He choked, as Ziva looked on with amusement. "Ah, okay, I'll see you there at 8?"

"_Sure thing. Bye Tony."_

"Bye." He hung up. A little flushed.

"You have a date with that girl tonight?"

"Yes, Ziva. It's Friday. Why, you wanna' have "the talk" with me?"

"What talk?"

"Oh, you know, the birds and the bees."

She was confused. "What do birds and bees have to do with dating?"

"Exactly," he said, getting up to go to the copier.

"But…"

He caught Gibbs smiling out of the corner of his eye.

He was on time. And she was already sitting at a table. As he walked in, she stood up and he felt that little stressful excitement well up inside again.

Her hair was up, with some tendrils flowing down, framing her lovely face. She was wearing a dress. A short, dark blue, crushed velvet, that revealed a bit of her décolletage, and it had long sleeves that gently belled out around her wrists. Under the simple but alluring dress, were patterned tights and alligator embossed stiletto heels. On another woman, it would be cheap looking. But on her…He thought oddly, Abby might like those shoes…but maybe with more…teeth or something coming out of the heels.

He leaned down and kissed her on the mouth, just quickly, tasting the peach essence again.

She smiled as they sat, "How was you're day dear ?"

He laughed. "Gruesome. And yours my darling?"

"Positively wretched." She opened her napkin and put it on her lap as the waiter handed him a menu. There was a congenial flow there, already between them, the physical attraction pulsing just underneath it.

They made more small talk, eventually leading to more personal questions. He liked the way her eyes looked as they spoke. She was deeply intelligent. And a little unconventional, if not a lot. Sometimes he couldn't tell if her eyes looked more brown or more green, in the low lights of the restaurant. Her lip gloss shined in the light of the votive candle on the table. He wondered if it was peach flavored.

"So…what made you want to be a Federal Agent?" she was nibbling on bread and then took a sip of her wine.

"I was actually a cop first," he said, noticing her brows coming up a little. "I was working a case when I met my current boss, and he offered me a job. I guess, I always wanted to help people. There was a lot out of my control when I was a kid…and unfair. And being a cop was opportunity to help make something right for other people. Or help them at least to try. My dad didn't agree with it…but, you know the story."

"Well, I know a little. But just one conversation far from puts it all together. It's so much more complicated than that…"she trailed off, looking at her glass.

"You said, he started slowly, "you lost your dad more recently."

She looked at him and nodded.

"You don't have to…I'm doing it again. Asking questions on a date I shouldn't."

"No…it's okay." She said it so softly, he could barely hear her. "It was last year…he…was murdered." His eyes widened. "And…" she shook her head a little, unable to continue.

"No. You can wait on that." He touched her hand across the table. "You tell me when you really feel you can. I'm sorry."

She looked at his hand, and then took it in both of hers. "You have fingers perfect for piano." She stroked his hand with her thumbs, lightly. It gave him a subtle chill of excitement. "Strong, but sensitive looking. Do you play?"

"I had lessons when I was a kid, but, no. I don't."

She smiled and sat back. "A shame. I can see you're very multifaceted, music would be a good outlet for you. It's so important to express yourself creatively."

He shrugged. "I don't know if I ever considered it really. I really like movies, including foreign films, but not excluding, A Weekend At Bernie's."

She laughed. "See? Multifaceted."

"But not like you…music and art…I'd love to see your artwork."

"Is that like saying, "I'd love to come up and see your etchings"?"

He laughed again. "Well, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't incredibly attracted to you. But, you are very…different. Than a lot of women I've known. And I'm really curious about learning more about you." He was sincere. And relieved he wasn't completely shallow, thinking only of what was underneath the blue dress.

She looked at him, he had the odd sensation she was looking into him, and said, "I can tell you a story. I can paint you a world. All you have to do is trust me."

He was a little mesmerized by the words. "Is that a quote from-"

"No." She shook her head. "Just me."

He took a shaky breath. _Trust me_. Wasn't that something. He flashed to E.J., trying to squash the memory down before it fully rose.

"How do you know…you can trust me?" he asked her, quietly, and suddenly serious.

"I'm a good judge of character," she said gently, and smiled. "And, I'm not a damsel in distress. I can handle myself." She looked at him, eyes level, unblinking.

He smiled and nodded. "Okay." He took a sip of his wine, and relaxed back. "Let's see what we can do."

The rest of dinner went well. So well, as a matter of fact, they ended up at her apartment after for "dessert."


	9. Chapter 9

Her apartment was in an upscale building off Dupont Circle. It was close enough for them to walk off dinner.

He was buzzing inside as the walked in the foyer. He immediately took in the décor.

It looked to be antiques. He thought maybe Victorian. Dark wood with ornate carving. There was art on the wall…on every wall. Some of it full color painting, some drawings of nudes and other still life illustrations. The frames varied in pattern and size – but all were gold. It was a strong, but elegant statement. In the midst of it, in the living groom was a camel backed couch, upholstered in a paisley patterned velvet, browns swirling, echoing the furnishings around it.

"Wow…" he said, I should have gone into Art Therapy."

She laughed warmly. "I inherited several properties when my father…died. SO, I cashed most of them out and got myself this place, and made it my comfortable nest."

He nodded. "Well, at least you were able to make something good out of the bad."

She smiled gratefully.

There was a large window on the outside wall of the living room, with an expansive view. And off that, looked to be an entrance to the kitchen. An ornate iron spiral staircase twirled like a DNA helix in the far corner of the room. He imagined her bedroom was up there…

He got caught up at looking at the art on the walls. One nude in particular had amazing charcoal lines on it.

"That's one of mine," she said, proudly. And most of the drawings are. Two of the still life paintings are mine, and most of the other art down here I inherited."

"It's…beautiful. You are really talented." He heard her lighting candles in the living room and smiled. But was still intent on looking at her artworks. "Were any of these in shows?"

"No," She said, dimming the lights a bit. "I actually have five pieces in a gallery right now though. If you want I'll take you to see them."

"I'd like that," he said straightening up from his slightly skewed stance in front of one of her larger pieces. It was peonies and apples. It was sensual and soft.

He turned to ask her another question and found her standing, fully naked, in front of him.

By the time Monday came around, he was exhausted. Miranda had proven more than talented in bed. She'd proven it out of the bed. In the living room. And in the kitchen. He'd only gone home last night.

They'd taken breaks, to get some food, talking and laughing, and falling asleep together. He didn't remember the last time he was able to let go of everything like that, and just lose himself in feeling good.

Of course, he also had some damage, scratches and bruises, from getting a little rough with her…or was it she got rough with him? Some of it was hazy. They'd been drinking wine, eating fruit…some of it off each other's bodies. They'd both seemed to need release from their demons, at times clawing and grabbing at each other as if they were drowning. She liked to bite, and pull his hair, and was the aggressor as much as he. That was totally different for him…and he liked it.

But she'd reacted accordingly as well, when he grabbed her long dark hair, and bent her over her antique sofa. They both reached their moment of ecstasy, with her screaming his name.

He shook his head to try and get the memory of how her body felt out of his mind. Gibbs would kill him if he didn't focus.

It didn't take long for Ziva to zone in.

"Good weekend, Tony?"

McGee looked on as he smiled brightly, "Most definitely yes."

She stared at him for a moment longer, and then got up, slowly walking over to him while studying him. Gibbs, who was at his desk, also glanced up, one eyebrow raised.

He started up his computer and looked at her. Her eyes were boring into him again. "What?"

"You…slept with her, didn't you? I can tell. You had sex."

"And this is a revelation to you _why_?"

"Tony! Don't you think you should be more careful? You only just met this woman last week!"

Gibbs was tempted to put a stop to it, but figured it might work itself out quickly enough. And it did.

Tony stood up, a little annoyed, "I don't see how it's any of your business when I decide to sleep with someone. I don't see you sharing about your acrobatics with C.I. Ray!"

"That is different! And we are not talking about **my** sex life!" She about stomped at the last bit, getting angry. "We are talking about yours!"

"So, you assume it's just about sex, huh?"

"Tony, you can _not_ possibly tell me-"

"We're done here," he said, walking out of the bullpen.

She was speechless for a while. And then got embarrassed, noticing Gibbs and McGee staring at her. Gibbs looking amused, McGee surprised.

She shook her head and went to her desk.

"Wow…"McGee said slowly. "I didn't think you could be so…"

"**What** McGee?"

"Girly…"he muttered it under his breath, afraid to look at her.

She glared at the Probie, pure daggers, while he cringed. Gibbs had to suppress a laugh. He knew Ziva really cared about Tony's wellbeing, so he didn't judge her too harshly when there was a little jealousy sprinkled into her "concern".

He knew they were all under a lot of pressure, and this case was horrible to even think about. So he'd let them take the weekend to recharge. Something told him though, that if they didn't get a break in the case soon, the body count was going to go up. And that thought made him shudder.


	10. Chapter 10

The bullpen was quiet for the rest of the morning. Tony really wasn't that angry with Ziva. He just reacted and felt she was attacking him for…he wasn't sure what. Having sex? Really? Or was she seriously worried about him?

But they all worked very hard, still digging into every scrap of information in the files. McGee was struggling to find a way to trace the calls to St. Mary's.

Chiu and Dillon were temporarily called away by Fornell on another case, but were due back Wednesday.

By the end of the day, things seemed pretty much back to normal between them. But Ziva still felt a little guilty about upsetting Tony.

He was shutting down his computer, and had a headache. He felt the eyes on him. "Yes?" He asked without looking up.

"I thought maybe…we could go for a drink, or food…if you are free."

He smiled, now looking up at her. "I appreciate the offer. But, I'm busy tonight. And before you give me that look-"

"What look?"

"The one you're giving me now, I want you to know I appreciate you worrying about me, but I'm fine. In fact, maybe I'm getting back to normal finally, after the last several months."

She swallowed and nodded, smiling a little. "Okay, Tony. But maybe tomorrow night?"

"Sure. And you too McHamburglar ? What about you Boss?" He smiled, knowing that he was going to see Gibbs soon anyway at his house for cowboy style steak and beer. Every other week on Monday night they got together, but he let Ziva think he was likely going out with Miranda again, just to let her stew.

"Sure! I'm in. Can I ask Abby and Palmer too? How about Ducky?" McGee was openly enthusiastic. This case was so depressing to him. He welcomed the chance to have some fun. The weekend of gaming didn't seem to relieve his stress as much as Tony's weekend had. Tony had looked tired all day…but calm and generally in a good mood.

"You get Duck to go and I will," Gibbs said, and they were all surprised. He knew tomorrow he was going to have a meeting with them all and drive them even harder on this case.

Later that night, Tony was slouched on Gibbs' couch.

The steak was excellent, and they ate in companionable silence until they started on their second beer each.

"So…"Gibbs began, smiling a little. "New girl."

"Miranda."

"Pretty name."

"Pretty girl."

"I'd expect no less, DiNozzo." He took a swallow of beer. "Had a good weekend?"

"Uh, yeah," Tony said, sitting up a little, to make sure he was alert and didn't say anything he'd be uncomfortable with later. He was still tired, if not exhausted from the weekend. "She's…unusual." He smiled at Gibbs. "Not like…double jointed unusual, though she is a bit of a freak…" so much for saying something embarrassing.

Gibbs shook his head slightly, laughing.

"I mean, everything. Her personality is…just really….kooky. And she's smart. And talented. Artist, musician. And she's an Art Therapist and works with kids."

Gibbs raised his eyebrows, "Pretty impressive. And a…freak. Nice."

Tony cringed. "Ahhh, sorry about that Boss. Can we forget that part, it's a little weird, coming from you. I don't think I can handle it."

Gibbs laughed again, so completely amused, blue eyes sparkling. "Sure, Tony."

There was a pause and then Gibbs said, "You like her…you may wanna' slow it down, Tony."

Tony sighed. "Now you sound like Ziva."

"Do I?" Gibbs tone had turned steely.

"Oh ah, no. No you don't sound like her. Not at all" Tony looked at Gibbs, and then suddenly bust up laughing. They both did.

Then Gibbs got a little more serious again. "I'm glad somebody is making you happy. I hope it lasts."

"Me too, Boss, me too."

_He was in a bed. The room was dark around him. He felt a body next to his…warm, soft._

_She smelled so good…it was Miranda._

_She had her back pressed up against him, round buttocks pressing up on his painfully hard erection._

_She moaned, writhing against him, dark hair brushing against his chest._

_Suddenly she sighed and got up, turning around to look at him._

_Her hazel eyes drifted over his body hungrily and then stopped at his face._

_Looking into his eyes, she pushed him back on the bed, straddling him. _

_He gasped when she lined him up, and took him inside of her, closing his eyes for a moment as the hot, wet pleasure overtook him._

_She smiled and raked her hands over his chest, moving her hips, bringing him slowly closer to losing control._

_He didn't want it to happen too soon…but his hands were grasping her thighs, and he couldn't stop himself from thrusting up harder into her._

_He was panting, almost struggling for air as they moved together, becoming frenzied._

_He closed his eyes for a moment again._

_When he opened them, it was no longer Miranda, but E.J., naked, on top of him, gaping wound in her chest oozing blood all over them._

_She was pale, dead, and leaned down, looking into his eyes, and when he noticed her pupils were the vertical slivers of snake eyes, she moaned mournfully, "You did this to me…"_

He sat up, heart pounding again, as it always did after one of these awful nightmares. He felt a chill from the cool air hitting his sweaty skin, horrified he was still half erect. E.J.'s face still overtook his mind, and he let out a strangled sob.

"I'm so sorry…"he whispered to the dark.

They all took the meeting well enough. Gibbs was brutal. But they understood it. They needed to find something on this killer. And soon.

McGee went down to pick Abby's brain on the phone calls to St. Mary's. Tony was looking for more info on the financial backgrounds of all the victims. Again. Gibbs was up at MTAC talking to Vance.

And suddenly she was there. Miranda, escorted by security. He jumped up, surprised, excited, and also puzzled.

"Hi!" She beamed. She was in another skirt suit...dark purple, with black piping. Sexy shoes...very sexy shoes. Spiked black patent with little bows on top. And she had a bag in her hand.

Scott from security said, "I hope it's okay Agent DiNozzo. She said she wanted to drop something off to you in person, and we tried you earlier but you weren't at your desk..."

"Ahhh...sure, no problem, Scott."

"Oh...ahhh, maybe I shouldn't have-" she began.

Ziva was staring at Miranda from her desk.

"Oh, no, no, it's fine." He smiled at her. "We just have a lot going on. But I'm glad to see you." He came out from behind his desk while Scott turned and went left to back downstairs. "You know, they don't usually let you come up, much less escort you have no one set to meet with you...but," he smiled and shook his head,"Im gonna bet you had him eating out of your hand."

Miranda giggled and offered the bag to him. "No, but I'm trying to get you to."

He laughed and took the bag. He opened it and his eyes widened. "You remembered. Nice." Then he looked at her. "Thank you."

The sound of Ziva clearing her throat interrupted them.

"Oh, ah, Miranda, this is Ziva David," he said, walking her to Ziva's desk as Ziva stood up.

Miranda put her hand out and took Ziva's. "Nice to meet you," she said sweetly.

Ziva looked up at her, and smiled,' "Yes, it is very nice to meet you too."

"Ziva and I work together, and my Boss and McGee sit over here too...but they're off somewhere..."he looked around, wondering if Gibbs would magically appear, as he usually did.

Miranda was looking at Ziva. Ziva was looking at Miranda.

Tony started getting nervous as the two seemed to be having a bizarre staring contest.

"You're beautiful," Miranda told Ziva, suddenly. Ziva was flabbergasted.

"Oh...th-thank you," Ziva stammered. She hadn't expected that.

_Oh, she's good…_ Tony thought. Smiling a little at her tactic.

Miranda turned to Tony, "You better share. I bought plenty in that bag."

He rolled his eyes. "Well of course I'm gonna' share. Have I seemed selfish at all so far?" There was a little suggestive undertone to his words.

"Oh no, Special Agent DiNozzo," she purred, playing with his tie. "You've been _very, very _generous."

Ziva cleared her throat again.

"Miranda, why don't I walk you downstairs. Boss is on the rampage today...so maybe we can plan something for tomorrow night? "

They walked towards the elevator, forgetting Ziva, as they continued chatting, "Well, I'm a little jammed the next couple of days, but...how about Friday ?...We can make another long weekend of it."

Ziva called after them, "It was nice to meet you." Then she sighed in frustration.

Gibbs had just come back to his desk, and McGee was already sitting at his. Ziva hadn't even noticed.

"Wow." McGee said. "Was that Tony's new girlfriend? She's beautiful."

"No, McGee. They are just seeing each other. She is not his girlfriend." Ziva was huffing a little.

"Um...I think, maybe she is...maybe..." McGee said, while Gibbs was looking at him, feeling sorry for what Ziva might do to him. "Did she seem nice?"

"I do not know, McGee. It was only an introduction. I do not see why Tony is so...so…bewitched by her."

"She's **hot,**" McGee stated.

"She is like an Amazon. And she has a very big butt."

McGee's eyes widened and he started laughing, while Gibbs couldn't help but smirk.

"She is also a bit of a baloney," Ziva said with indignation.

"You mean, phoney baloney? " McGee asked.

"Yes. Yes. That."

Gibbs finally put his foot down, wanting them to get back to work. "Knock it off, David. Either of you gonna' find out what's in the bag? "

She got up and went to Tony's desk, giving a sheepish glance towards Gibbs.

"Powdered jelly donuts. His favorite kind. How...cute." She was sickened.

"Well," said Gibbs gruffly,"pass em' out David. The lady said to share."

Ziva picked her head up to look at Gibbs. "But...you were in MTAC..." she placed a donut on his desk.

He just shrugged and smiled at her. She went back to her desk, ignoring McGee who was expecting a donut but didn't get one.

"How _does_ he do that?" She muttered to herself, taking an angry bite of donut.

He tried to shake it off…but the dream had stayed with him all day. And though he thoroughly enjoyed Miranda stopping by, he couldn't help but feel the fear he had inside, that she would be another woman hurt or worse because of being involved with Tony DiNozzo.

Ziva had known enough to leave him alone after the donut delivery. She could see the fatigue in his face, the shadows under his eyes from a lack of sleep.

At the end of the day, he still went with them to O'Malley's, because he was big on doing what he promised.

Ducky and Gibbs made it out with the others as well. It seemed everyone needed a little break from staring at the Snakebite Killer's victims in their files.

Tony tried to focus on the conversation, but his mind flashed back and forth between Miranda and the vision of E.J. bleeding on top of him. So he ended up fading from the conversation, quietly drinking his beer.

Ziva leaned over him, and said "I am sorry," in his ear.

He raised an eyebrow. "For what, Ziva?"

"I get worried about you, and, I guess I over acted."

He let out a little laugh. "Reacted."

"Yes."

He shook his head. "You know, I think I'm probably a little more worried than you are. So, don't think I'm not aware of how this can go." He picked up his bottle and drained out the rest of the beer. It was his 9th ? Or was it the 10th ?

She sighed. "Maybe you have had enough to drink."

He suddenly felt furious with her. First she was monitoring his sex life, now his drinking ? "**You know what, Ziva**? You better call Ray and get his ass back into town, cos' you need to get laid. You're way too concerned with my business."

Her mouth was agape. Her eyes were bright with shock, and then hurt.

The others heard him, looking on with a mix of horror and amusement.

He got up, and said, "I think it's time to go home." He turned to walk out, but stumbled as a hand grabbed his shoulder.

"You got that right, DiNozzo. I dunno what the hell's gotten into you two," Gibbs growled, "but it better be straightened out by the time you're back on the case tomorrow." Gibbs looked at Ziva, the acid stare working her over. She looked away and nodded. Ducky gently patted her back, urging her back to where Abby and McGee were sitting. He gave Gibbs a reproaching look.

They were all silent, watching Gibbs guide Tony out of the bar.

"You think Tony is an alcoholic?" Abby asked worriedly, looking at Ducky. But before Ducky could answer her, McGee spoke.

"No. I think he's just been through a lot. And I think," he said looking at Ziva,"we should cut him some slack."

She gave him a sour look. But when she saw the others looking at her, she just rolled her eyes.

The next day, they hardly spoke to each other, but got their work done. Ziva tried her best to smooth it over, but Tony had been hung over, and stiff after a night sleeping on Gibbs' couch. So he wasn't up for the small talk anyway. Gibbs had tried to get him to open up when they got to his house, but, he'd refused. He couldn't bring himself to talk to Gibbs about the nightmares.

Gibbs was getting worried about Tony, but they needed to focus on the case. They were all becoming demoralized, Dillon and Chiu giving them understanding looks in between reviewing the facts again. They packed up their desks to go home for the night in silence.

Thursday morning, Tony was woken out of a dreamless sleep by his phone ringing. It was 05:44.

"DiNozzo," he said sleepily.

"We got another one. Rock Creek Park. Gear up and meet us there at the North 7 entrance." Gibbs had a tone that was somewhere between fury and anguish.

"On my way, Boss."

When Tony got there, he realized it was almost comforting to have Chiu and Dillon on site, to help with the heinous crime scene he was expecting to see.

The van was already there, Palmer and Ducky unloading a few bags.

The crowd wasn't as big as last time, maybe because it was simply earlier than when Petty Officer McKenna was found.

Gibbs was talking to Fornell on the phone as Ziva and McGee walked up next to them, carrying their equipment. They all dodged under the police tape, and made their way up a gentle incline, to an alcove of trees a few hundred feet from the parking lot. Some of the LEO's were standing in between the body and the lot, pointing to where they should go.

It wasn't hard to figure out though, since they could see the light of the candles.


	11. Chapter 11

It was far enough away from the road that it was very quiet in the alcove of trees where Mark Ramirez was lying dead. He was young. Only 24 years old. He'd been reported missing by his parents, whom he still lived with, three days before. His dark hair and eyelashes stood out severely against the pale, blue tinged color of his skin. He had a straight nose and full lips. _He must have been a nice looking kid,_ Gibbs thought, _and is that all it took for this sick bastard to make his choice on a victim ?_

As before, there were the pillar candles, white roses, vinyl tarp, and scent of Kyphi. The alcove of trees was a mix of birch with other dark ones. It gave a somber backdrop to the displayed death before it.

The young man was dressed in a grey turtleneck sweater and jeans, brown leather sneakers. His arms folded in the funerary pose they had expected.

"Motherfucker," Chiu whispered to himself. He was standing over Ducky's shoulder again, looking at the corpse. Ducky twitched a little at the use of foul language, but he knew Chiu was upset, so he let it go.

They were all looking on as Ducky gently pulled down the turtleneck and revealed both the symbol tattooed on the young man's throat, and the fang marks, which were at the side of his neck.

"Poor lad," Ducky said mournfully. "What a horrible thing. You were so young."

They all felt badly about not somehow solving the case, preventing this from happening.

"I want this bastard," Gibbs uttered in a low growl. He stood at Ramirez's feet, staring angrily at the white roses and candles, phone still clutched in his hand after hanging up with Fornell..

"He's not Navy, Boss ?" McGee asked.

"No, but Metro knows to call us if one of these shows up. After McKenna, they're all ours, McGee." Gibbs pinched the bridge of his nose to relieve the tension he felt building in his head. He had informed Fornell, and it was nice that Tobias hadn't been smug about it. He turned to his agents. "Ok get moving. Chiu, with Ziva on statements. Dillon, crowd's starting to build over there'" he could see in the distance the LEO's were working a little harder around the tape, as it was a larger area to try to block off,"so go give them a hand."

He looked at McGee and Tony, both pale, like they all were. "DiNozzo, shoot. McGee I want you over every inch of this alcove with a fine tooth comb." McGee nodded slowly and then shook himself and got moving. Tony shot him a concerned glance as he raised the camera to start.

Any of the usual banter was completely gone. They worked in silence, except for Ducky, who gave several more condolences to the young man whose life had been cut down too short.

No one spoke in the truck all the way back to the office. But they were still hopeful there would be some new clue or lead to help put and end to the sadisitic perpetrator who was eluding them, and at the cost of another life.

Abby looked at the boxes being laid on her table. "Another one ?" she said sadly to McGee, as she perused the white candles and roses.

He nodded,"Yeah."

She looked at him, seeing how upset he was. They were all upset, she knew. But…McGee had such a gentle heart. She knew these cases really struck him, and left him sadly confused about the dark side of humanity.

"Looks to be the same killer…Ducky's gonna send up the blood samples and skin swabs to you…," he trailed off, staring at the box for a minute. Then he sighed and turned to leave.

Abby put a hand on his arm and stopped him, looking at his face, and then wordlessly pulling him into an embrace. He sighed again, heavily. She could feel him tremble slightly.

"This is just…" he breathed into her neck.

'I know, Tim. I know. But we are going to get him. We are. I know it." She rubbed his back a little, but had nothing else to say.

Ziva and Chiu went to see Mark Ramirez's parents, while Tony worked on the victims records, and Dillon was still not back from helping the LEO's with the crime scene crowd.

It seemed the Snakebite Killer's victims had now made it to some degree of fame, and people were coming in droves to take a look, not knowing the body and it's stylized presentation had already been removed.

Tony frowned at his desk. Financials on a 24 year old man, in college to become a lawyer. His debts were far greater than his income. But it was all student loans. He had very little in way of credit debt, and not much of a savings account. Tony shook his head to himself. It was making him furious. There had to be _something._

His phone rang. "Special Agent DiNozzo." He answered without his usual gleeful greeting.

"_It's Miranda."_

"Oh, hey," he said softly, glad to hear from her but feeling out of sorts from the case.

'_What's wrong ?"_

"Hah, why would you ask that ?"

"_Because…I can tell by your voice."_

He sighed. "We have a really tough case. But…you know, I think I might be having a slightly better day since you called."

"_Really…well, maybe I can make it even better by telling you what I've got planned for you this weekend."_

" I am all ears," he said, grateful for the distraction now.

"_Commando picnic in my apartment. Gallery hopping Saturday. Movies Saturday night. Sunday morning breakfast in bed. And then I kick your butt out because I have a client to evaluate Sunday afternoon at the parents house."_

"Where did you come from?" He asked affectionately. "I mean, a commando picnic…that's unbelievable. Does that mean I have to-"

"_Yes. No underwear. And if you wear them to my apartment, you will be left out, disqualified." She chuckled. "This is really a picnic, blanket and food included. Just…on my floor instead of a park. And…you get to pick the movie Saturday night. And…" she continued a little more quietly,"you get to see my art in a gallery Saturday afternoon."_

"It sounds fantastic. All of it. What time am I reporting in for picnic time?"

"_How about…7:30 ?"_

"Ah…let's make it 8, okay? It may be a later day for us tomorrow…"

"_Okay lover," she crooned sweetly, "bye."_

"Bye."

He smiled for a moment, but it faded from his lips, as he looked back at his computer screen, at the lack of any valuable information needed to catch the Snakebite Killer.


	12. Chapter 12

They worked until 22:00. Ducky had gleaned all the same information as from Petty Officer McKenna. He understood when Gibbs said nothing and silently stormed out of Autopsy, and why Tony and McGee looked like someone had shot their dog.

This case was pushing all their limits.

Ziva had learned with Chiu, that Ramirez was a hard worker, doing all kinds of odd jobs to help support him through school. He got top grades, and was motivated. The parents were so bereft, that they were unable to continue the interview, but agreed to have them come back.

They returned to the office, disheartened, without anything to offer Gibbs.

Gibbs had gone down to see Abby, and when she recited almost verbatim, the details of Petty Officer McKenna's case, he blew up, pounding his fist on her table and swearing like a truck driver. Though it was not directed at her, she backed away from him a few feet, tears welling in her eyes.

He was breathing heavily, but calming down after his brief flash of emotion. He knew he shouldn't have lost it around Abby, and regretted it immediately.

She held out her Caf-Pow to him, with a trembling hand, head hanging down. "Here, Gibbs. I kind of feel like I didn't deserve this one."

He was stunned for a second, then grabbed it and slammed it down on the counter while grabbing her into an embrace with his other arm.

"I'm sorry Gibbs," she said quietly, "I wanna tell you something different so bad…"

"Shhh," he said, stroking her hair, "not your fault. If there's something to tell, I know you always find it, Abs, _always_."

He had consciously turned himself down a notch by the time he was back in the bullpen. He looked at them all. Not one face without shadows under their eyes, stress evident in the grim set of their mouths.

He could hear Mike Franks in his ear, _"When you get too close, Probie, that's when you gotta step back, take a breather, and look at it from the left hand side instead," _and smiled sadly.

When he saw the time, he said, "Go home. Get some rest. Everyone in at 10:00 hours tomorrow."

They looked shocked, but were too tired to question it. They all emptied out of the bullpen, except Tony.

He had heard Gibbs explode in Abby's lab, staying just outside the door when he realized his presence might not help the situation. He walked over to Gibbs' desk.

"Boss…you okay?"

"No. Tony. I won't be okay until we get this bastard."

He nodded. He understood Gibbs probably better than anyone else. Well, maybe besides his three ex-wives. "You wanna get a beer, or order pizza at your place?"

Gibbs thought about taking him up on it, but then looking at Tony's face, he could see the genuine concern in the very tired, green eyes. "Thanks, son. But I think we've all had a long day. You go home, get some rest. I'm gonna do the same."

Tony didn't mind the rejection, since it came with Gibbs calling him "son". It only happened once in a while, usually when no one else was around, and Tony had done something right. Coming from the man he looked up to going on 10 years now, it meant a lot.

He smiled at Gibbs, looking almost embarrassed for a moment, and then nodded without saying anything.

They both packed up for the night, and rode the elevator down together in silence.

Friday was more of the same fruitless searching. But they all tried to keep it in perspective as best they could.

Ziva and Chiu went back to the Ramirez house, only to find that Mrs. Ramirez had to go to the hospital in the morning for an anxiety attack, so they were nicely asked to come back after the funeral. They had no choice but to agree.

McGee was going through Ramirez's phone records again, but found nothing that tied him into St. Mary's, or any other common connection with the other victims.

Dillon went back to Wednesday's crime scene in Rock Creek Park, but there was nothing that had been missed by McGee the first go round. He spent most of the day quietly looking through all the victim files again. How many times had he done it? Gibbs wondered.

He could see they were all trying as hard as they could, and he knew at some point they would find out who the sonofabitch was, and take them down. He just hoped it was before someone else was murdered. He had the urge to ask them to work over the weekend, but he couldn't do it. Looking at them, they needed to keep perspective before they all burned out.

Tony looked like he was going to jump out of his skin by the end of the day. They all knew it was because of the enticing Miranda.

When Gibbs told them to go home and come back at 07:00 Monday, Tony bolted for the elevator. As he got on, Ziva was right next to him.

He looked at her from the corner of his eye. "Ziva…about the other night…I was out of line…"He turned to her, and had a very sincere look in his eyes.

She smiled a little and shook her head."It is more my fault, Tony, I over acted."

He laughed. "You overreacted. And so did I."

The doors opened, and they got off and stood in front of the elevator for a moment.

"So what are you going to do this weekend?"

She smiled a bit devilishly. "I took your advice and asked Ray to get his ass back here so I could get laid."

He choked a little, not expecting that response, and then grinned wide. "Ha, awesome."

Then he surprised her by grabbing her into a tight hug, before grunting out,"Gotta go !" and running off to the garage.

She smiled and shrugged, "Have a good weekend Tony."

Saturday afternoon found him wandering Dupont Circle amongst the many galleries Miranda wanted him to see. The commando picnic had gone very well the night before. They had a checkered blanket, and picnic basket in her living room, and there was pizza in that basket. He had gone to Tony DiNozzo heaven. They relaxed with wine, and gave each other massages that got out of control quickly, turning into a frenzy that would have made porn stars blush. He woke up early in the morning, with her arm around his waist and a paper plate stuck to his ass.

It would not have been his first choice to go to galleries on a Saturday, or probably any day for that matter, but he smiled because they had started the day off right. With her pressed up against the wall of the shower, screaming out her orgasm under the spray of the water.

"Are you even listening?" she laughed at him. "What do you think about this one?" she was asking him about a painting. They'd been to three galleries already, and he was enjoying her opinions on the art, but didn't have a lot to offer that way himself.

"Um, it's colorful?" It was a big mush of brush strokes, in about five different colors. Abstract. Not really his thing.

She rolled her eyes and sighed. "Maybe I somehow damaged your brain with all the sex we've been having."

"Hey!" he said with indignation. And then smiled broadly. "I…like the sex."

"Mmm-hmm. Well, you better pay attention at the next gallery."

She took his hand and lead him out to the street. They were dressed similarly in jeans and leather jackets, though her clothing was distinctly more feminine with more shaping to it and some ruffle details around the cuffs of her jacket. She looked chic with her ponytail and huge sunglasses. It was bright out, but it was getting cold, as expected for mid December.

They walked up the steps to Gallerie Du Cerisier. The doors reminded him of Absinthe posters, and the Art Nouveau furniture his mother had liked when she was alive. The wood was gracefully carved, with organic forms echoing flowers and tree branches arching up to the tops. The antiqued handles were flowing leaves.

Inside the gallery were several collections, all on their own cream colored partition. He knew which section was Miranda's right away, the large gilded frames surrounding still lifes of florals with other interesting objects. They were deep in color, beautifully textured, in oils. 'Wow'' he said softly, sincerely impressed by her talent. "These are much bigger than the ones in your place. And even more beautiful."

She beamed at him, and said, "Thank you, lover. I'm going to go fetch Michel - Michel Gravois, the owner. He and I are good friends so I want you to meet him."

"Okay. I'll be right here." He smiled and then started to really look at her pieces. He stopped in front of the first one, blood lilies lying across a golden harp. The colors and delicacy of the harp strings was amazing. The next was peonies, large and pink, in a pressed glass vase that had an image of an old schooner on it, on an old wooden table. Next were white roses simply lying on a dark ground of velvet fabric. He felt a little chill looking at it. It was the next painting that stopped him, suddenly rooting him to the ground. He couldn't breathe. It was an image of white roses, full and open, lying at the base of a large golden cobra with ruby eyes.


	13. Chapter 13

He felt a little dizzy when he finally got himself to release the breath he was holding. He could hear Miranda speaking to a man with a soft, low voice.

"...be there next weekend?" she was saying.

"Well, yes, but completely unseen and unheard. Zees will be fine, Miranda, do not worry so. Now, let me see zees man you have been mauling." The man's French accent was thick but he was understandable.

Tony was still staring at the painting, shivering slightly.

"Tony?" Miranda called his name, a little concerned. When he didn't respond she said more loudly, "Hey, you alright honey?" And she touched his shoulder.

He finally turned to her, and the well dressed man next to her. "I'm sorry...I, ahh, just need to sit down for a minute..." his legs didn't feel right. The damned Snakebite Killer had done this. Turned him into a basket case.

Michel said,"Of course, right over here." The man, who was tall, with curly blonde hair and glasses lead him to a seat by the ornate wooden partition where the register was. He looked at Tony with a concerned frown, brown eyes taking in Tony's pale face. " Let me get you some water, ah ?"

As Michel went in the back room, he scolded Miranda. "What are you doing to zees poor man, Miranda? He looks exhausted."

She rolled her eyes at him while gently rubbing Tony's back."Funny, Michel." She turned to Tony. "Are you okay?"

He looked up at her concerned expression, big hazel eyes on him. He knew it was not a big deal that she had painted a cobra statue into one of her still lifes...but, the victims of the Snakebite Killer and his horrible nightmares...were bouncing around his mind. He couldn't help the subtle terror he felt looking at the image of the serpent. And he hadn't expected to see it. All he said though was,"I'm just so worn out from work this week...the case we're on...has just been really hard. I didn't mean to worry you."

"Are you sure ? That's it?" her tone said she didn't believe him.

He was about to answer when Michel came back, pushing a bottle of water into his hand. "Drink zees, now, before you get up. You were pale like a spectre."

Tony raised an eyebrow and almost laughed. A spectre. Who says that?

He held his other hand out to Michel, and as they shook he said, "Im Tony, and thank you for the water."

Michel smiled. "Michel Gravois. A great pleasure." And then said to Miranda, "Beautiful, and good manners too. Very nice, Miranda."

He suddenly felt like a horse having it's teeth examined.

"Ahhh, so, how did you two meet each other ?" he tried changing the subject, and took a sip of water.

"Michel and I both had art in another gallery, about a year and a half ago...around the time my father..." she tried to contain the little twist of pain in her voice. "Well, anyway, we hit it off, and became best friends. And when he decided to open his own gallery, I was the first artist on his wall."

Tony saw the way they looked at each other. It reminded him of himself and Ziva. That was disturbing. And he felt a small twinge of jealousy. Followed by slight humiliation because he prided himself as never being a jealous person.

"Oui', we have very much een common, Miranda and I. You could say we are… kindred spirits. And she ees very picky about what she...eats."

"Michel!"

"What, I was just telling heem how lucky he ees." Michel gave Tony a scrutinizing look." I hope he ees worthy, Miranda."

"I'm right here," Tony said gently to them both. "I can hear you, you know." Miranda chuckled and Michel smiled at him, clearly amused. He shifted in the seat. "So, the painting with the cobra statue..."he began, needing to know. "What made you pick that ?"

"Oh, Michel is a world traveler. He has all kinds of crazy stuff, statuary and art from all over the world. I just thought that golden cobra was a powerful image, with the roses. You know, things of beauty, sometimes being deadly…" She laughed and raised one of her arched brows.

He smiled and shook his head. "Okay, well, your work is amazing." He stood up and gave her a quick kiss. "Maybe we should celebrate your work by eating a giant, bloody hamburger."

She grinned. "You need to refuel ! The day's far from over , so yeah, let's go grab some cow."

They said their goodbyes to Michel, who handed Tony two flyers as they left. One was on Miranda and her art, the other one was about the gallery. As he went down the steps out of Gallerie Du Cerisier, he took one more glance over his shoulder at the cobra painting.

The rest of the day put him back in DiNozzo heaven. They went to an action movie, that night, after burgers and beer, and went back to her apartment again.

He was still struggling to keep his mind off the case, and E.J., and his nightmares. He felt like his mind had a loose thread in it, and one tug might unravel the whole thing.

So when Miranda started to rip his clothes of while they were sitting on the couch, he grabbed her wrists to still her. She looked at him questioningly, and he looked into her eyes for a while. He gave her a little smile, and kissed her slowly, holding her close to him. She seemed to sense what he needed, so she allowed him to get up and remove all their clothes, and pull her down onto his lap again. She took it slowly, providing more comfort this time than heat. They rocked together with bodies wrapped around each other until they both eventually reached their climax.

_He was bound to a chair, like he had been in Somalia. He struggled but couldn't get free of the ropes that were cutting into his wrists. _

_He looked up._

_E.J. was tied to a post of some kind, hands over her head. Naked._

_And Stratton was there, hand cupping her chin as she glared angrily at him._

"_Leave her alone !" he yelled angrily. But neither E.J. or Stratton looked at him._

_Stratton was running his hands over her body, and she was crying, calling for Tony to help her._

"_Please…please Tony, don't let him do this to me!"_

_He struggled harder but it was of no use._

_She was screaming now, and Stratton had his pants down, holding her legs up, raping her._

_Tony screamed, "NO! You FUCKING BASTARD!"_

_Suddenly the vision shifted, and it was Miranda, tied to the post, moaning in ecstasy as a cobra slid up and around her leg._

He sat bolt upright, blood rushing through his head, gasping for air. He didn't notice right away when there were arms around him, or soothing words in his ear. It took him a few moments to realize Miranda was worriedly calling his name, and he put his shaking arms around her, holding her tight to him.


	14. Chapter 14

When Monday came, Tony was even more worn out than at the start of the weekend. He was a little pasty looking, with shadows under his eyes. Everyone else seemed to look recharged and rested, even Chiu who was loitering by the window with his coffee, looked improved.

B_ut were they afraid to close their eyes at night? _He thought maybe by now Chiu had to be having nightmares about the case. Tony had gone home yesterday after his time with Miranda, catching up on laundry and mail that had accumulated from the week before. He tried to get to bed early. But soon enough, the nightmares started. And though he managed to get back to sleep, he ended up in the same state, wide awake, covered in sweat, terrorized by his subconscious. They seemed to be getting crazier. _Maybe I'm going nuts_, he thought speculatively.

He threw his bag down and sat heavily in his chair, rubbing his face while he booted up his computer.

They were all keenly aware of his lack of a greeting.

"Good morning, Tony!" McGee was the one to break the silence.

Tony mumbled without looking at him, "Good morning McChipper."

"You do not look so well," Ziva said, with a serious look, until an obvious thought crossed her mind. "You are worn out, yes? That girl is giving you a run for your money."

They both looked at her. McGee was grinning. "That was really a good one Ziva. You got that one right off the bat."

"I did not get it from any bat. Why would-"

"Too good to be true, McHopeful." Tony said tiredly, but smiling.

Ziva continued, "I do not understand."

"It's a saying that means getting it right the first time," McGee explained.

She threw her hands up in the air in frustration. "I will never get all these ridiculous American idioms…and by the way, idiom is quite similar to the word idiotic."

"You know what they say, Ziva," Tony smiled, about to continue what he was saying but Gibbs walked into the bullpen and said it for him.

"If at first you don't succeed, try, try again, David." Gibbs sat down at his desk, glancing up at them, Then did a double take on his SFA. "DiNozzo, what happened to you?" The younger man looked like hell, and was in jeans and a sweater today. Not a good sign.

Tony looked at Gibbs, and then down for a moment, uncertain what to say. But after a few moments passed, he saw Gibbs frown, and shake his head to himself, returning to the paperwork on his desk. Tony knew Gibbs had assumed it was because of Miranda, and now he felt a little upset that his mentor had pegged him to be so irresponsible.

Tony sighed and went back to his screen. There was an email from Vance calling for a meeting on the Snakebite Killer case, copied to Fornell, Chiu, and Dillon. "Great," he mumbled.

The meeting as it turned out, was a bitch out. Vance was getting on their case now, asking questions about what they had done to facilitate a solve. It was demoralizing, a slap in the face after they all tried to pull themselves together over the weekend. Gibbs and Fornell remained mostly silent, knowing this was just posturing from Vance, to look like he had his fingers on what was happening. But, after the meeting, the rest of the day was fairly sour.

Tony went home that night, bone tired. The lack of proper sleep was actually getting painful. He threw his bag down, collapsing, fully clothed onto his bed.

When he jumped up, horrific images fading from the latest nightmare, he saw the clock said 01:00 hours. "Shit," he moaned, rubbing his eyes. And then in a wondrous tone, "If I don't get some sleep, I'm _really _gonna go out of my mind."

He got up an took off his clothes, and poured a large glass of vodka for himself, slamming it down. _There,_ he thought, _that should help_.

When they saw him again on Tuesday, looking even worse, with bloodshot eyes, they didn't say anything about it. Both Ziva and McGee looked from Tony to Gibbs, with pleading glances. He nodded to them slightly. Then Gibbs sent them all out to recheck some more case interviews. Except for Tony.

"DiNozzo, my office." He turned and headed for the elevator.

Tony rolled his eyes and got up from his desk.

"Now," Gibbs barked, and he jogged over into the open doors.

He stood, ready for the reprimand he thought was coming, as Gibbs hit the switch and the darklights came on, casting blue light on them.

He looked at the doors in front of him, as Gibbs got comfortable, leaning against the wall to his left.

"DiNozzo, wanna tell me what the hell is going on?" Gibbs' voice was gentle. It surprised him.

Tony was silent for a moment. He turned and looked at Gibbs. Concern was evident in his friend's ice blue eyes, and his brow was slightly furrowed.

He absently ran his hand through his hair, and looked down. "I dunno."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow. "You don't know? Really ? No idea, Tony?"

"I…" he knew he had to say something," I guess it's just the case…"

"Hmmm. And with all that… theraputic time you're spending with your new girl?" Gibbs continued to stare at him.

"Well, ah, she is kinda wearing me out, Boss…" he hoped he could avoid talking about the nightmares… at the expense of making himself seem like a teenager getting laid for the first time.

Gibbs glared at him for a moment. "You're full of shit. But if you don't wanna talk about it, okay. I… just want you to tell me, if this case becomes too much –"

"What? No way –" Tony immediately objected, feeling that Gibbs thought he was weak now. But Gibbs ignored his outburst.

"If this case becomes too much, you tap out, DiNozzo. That is an order. You've had a bad year. Sometimes, it piles up." And Gibbs flipped the switch, not saying anything else.

Tony was sullen the rest of the day, working at his desk on the mundane supply order paperwork Gibbs requested he do.

His phone rang.

"Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo."

"_Why hello there."_

He smiled. "Why hello yourself."

"_How's your day going lover?"_

"You know, I am really not used to someone calling me that."

"_Is it a bad thing?"_ _there was a pout in her tone._

"I guess not when you say it. I've been called worse things."

_She laughed._ _"So, I'm calling to see if I can kidnap you."_

He snorted. "Oh yeah? And where would you be thinking of taking me?"

"_My cabin, up in the Blue Ridge Mountains. For a long weekend. If we left Thursday night, we could have all Friday, too."_

"It's like three hours to get up there, right?"

"_Yep."_

"Well," he sighed,"thing is, as much as I'd love to do the extra time and leave Thursday, this case…it's very important. So I don't feel right about asking my boss for the day when everyone is working so hard on this. I hope you can understand…"

"_Well, I can live with that. You good to go up Friday night then? Coming back Sunday night?"_

"Sure. Should I be prepared to bring anything specific?" He was thinking hiking boots, sweaters.

"_Maybe, your handcuffs." She practically purred it into the phone_.

He felt his pants getting uncomfortable at the thought. "Don't!" he hissed, laughing. "What if I have to go to the copier? Or chase a criminal?"

"_Well," she chuckled, "I hope the copier is on a stable surface so you don't knock it over, and I'm sure the criminal would be frightened enough to just surrender. I know that thing scares me sometimes."_

He laughed harder, until he noticed Gibbs looking at him from his desk. "Uh…I gotta go…"

"_Okay sexy. Later."_

"Bye."

He went back to his paperwork while Gibbs was still looking at him thoughtfully.

He knew there was more to Tony's pallor and general exhaustion, than this girl. He was worried, but also proud of Tony for letting her know how important his job was, and that he had people counting on him. And glad she seemed to breathe a little life into the younger man's dampened energy.

Ziva was back by the end of the day, at her desk, watching Tony pack up for the night. McGee had left early for a dentist appointment, and Gibbs was down talking to Abby.

"So…"she started, picking at her nails, "how is your…girlfriend?"

"Oh, she's good. Fine." He was zipping up his backpack. Then he suddenly remembered something, and opened a pocket, pulling out the marketing cards from Gallerie Du Cerisier. "Actually," he said, smiling, and placing them on her desk,"this should be interesting for you. Miranda is a very talented artist. I thought…it would be nice to show you her work. It's actually on display at this gallery. I met the owner. He's French." He was proud of her.

Ziva took a glance at them, and then looked at Tony. "I will take a look when I get a chance." She said with falsified interest.

"And how was your weekend with C.I. Ray? I never got to ask you."

"It was fine," she said, but offered no more than that. She would never admit to Tony that she and Ray had a huge fight…over how close she was to him.

"Good."

"Yes."

"Great."

Another moment brought no more to the conversation, so he said,"G'nite, Ziva." And left as she gave him a little wave.

She looked at the gallery cards in front of her, and muttered,"Bitch,"to herself as she tossed them into her in box.


	15. Chapter 15

Wednesday brought Tony in looking no better. They let him be when he didn't say good morning, but instead threw his elbows on his desk and rubbed his eyes while the computer started up.

He was late. But after another intense nightmare last night he broke down and took a sleeping pill he got from Miranda. And then he slept too long. After she'd seen the one horrible episode for herself, she had shared some of her own prescription with him. She occasionally had sleep problems as well, but not like his. At least her insomnia yielded beautiful art…

Ziva's phone rang. "Agent David."

He glanced up at her, and she gave him a warm smile as she continued on her call.

"Yes, that would be very good….I understand." Then a pause. "We are very sorry for your loss. Okay. We will be there tomorrow at one o'clock." She hung up. Then she leaned forward a bit and said, "The Ramirez family is willing to see us tomorrow at one, after the burial." She was looking at Gibbs who was at his desk.

"Good. Tomorrow you can take Chiu with you again. In the meantime, it's a stretch but go down to the college and talk with the Professors. If he stood out for any reason it may help us to know. Chiu and Dillon aren't in til' later. Take McGee with you."

The two agents looked at Tony as they got their things together to go. McGee walked over to Tony. "You want us to bring you back lunch later, Tony?"

He smiled. Both Ziva and McGee were looking at him with that worried expression he found sweet but maddening. "Okay, sounds good McHamburglar. Call me on the way back."

"Okay, "McGee said without any attitude over the nickname, "See you later."

Ziva nodded at him, and they both left.

It was quiet in the bullpen. Tony could feel Gibbs staring at him but ignored it, opening his email with a sigh.

Gibbs' phone rang. After a moment he said,"Be right there, Abs. DiNozzo, with me."

Tony all but jumped out of his seat. "Abby got somethin' Boss ?"

"Nothing big, she says, but an idea about the victims."

As they left the bullpen, Tony said, "Well, that's somethin', isn't it ?" He smiled at Gibbs enthusiastically.

Gibbs simply said, "We'll see."

Abby was twirling one of her pigtails rapidly, staring at her screen. She turned and smiled as they entered the lab. And smiled wider, taking the Caf-Pow from Gibbs.

She frowned suddenly, taking in Tony's appearance. "Ohhhh, Tony, you don't look very good. Are you sick ? Is Gibbs working you guys to hard ? You aren't are you Gibbs ? Because he looks-"

"Abby," Tony jumped in, "I'm fine. I'm just tired. Whaddya' got ?" He gave her a classic smile.

She wrinkled her brow for a moment but then shrugged, and looked at Gibbs. "So, I got to thinking about the whole, female victim, male victim progression. I mean, they were all treated the same way ...horribly…but, anyway, it made sense after I thought about it with the shaving and the Kyphi. The other things…I dunno some still don't make sense, but with the infinity symbol it sort of works." She looked at them somehow expecting them to understand.

"Abby," Gibbs said, his tone irritated.

She jumped and turned to her table. And had a picture of the infinity symbol from Petty Officer McKenna's pale throat enlarged on the screen. "I started thinking, what if this represented eight, as well as infinity ? And since I did some research into the Kyphi oil, I started to learn more about ancient Egyptian cultural and ceremonial practices, and also the mythos as well. So, shaving the body was considered pleasing to the gods. I mean, they used to shave their heads too and wear wigs…but anyway, I started thinking about the number eight and looking into anything that corresponded to that number in the myths. And I found this."

Now on her screen were eight Egyptian gods, 4 male and 4 female, shown in pairs. Abby pointed to the first pair as she explained. "The Ogdoad were the primeval forces of chaos in Egyptian mythology, represented as eight deities that existed before the creation of the sun god. The eight were considered as four couples, each embodying a different aspect of the primal world: Nun and Naunet, the god and goddess of the primordial waters; Kek and Keket, the deities of darkness; Amon and Amaunet representing invisible power; and Heh and Hehet representing infinity. For every 'female' deity there is the 'male' counterpart, to make up a whole, according to the Egyptian complementary way of thinking. The male ones are shown with frogs´heads and the female ones with snakes´heads. The eight divinities of the Ogdoad are thought to jointly have created the Cosmic Egg, or the sun, out of the primeval waters."

She turned back to them. "The fact that the goddesses of the Ogdoad all have snakes' heads somewhere on their headdress or as their head could be significant here. The snake is a symbol of alchemical change and divinity. Possibly, our killer sees his victims as divine vessels, given the ritual cleansing, shaving, and almost reverent presentation of how they're found. The snake bite itself, could represent a mystical entrance or initiation."

They were both staring at her, but then realized she had finished.

"So our next victim would be female, and the seventh. Abs, does this mean, after eight, he would stop killing and just ...disappear?" That thought chilled him to the bone, and made him angry at the same time.

"I dunno, Tony. I don't know how the killer was driven to arrive at this point in the first place, but I can tell you they are very intelligent, and likely suffered a bad brush with death. Maybe Ducky could…take this idea too and turn it over a bit."

"Good work Abs," Gibbs gave her the most sincere smile he had in weeks, and then walked out.

"This just keeps getting more complicated," Tony said softly, and then gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before following after Gibbs.

Gibbs was back in the bullpen, on the phone for an hour when he saw Tony had fallen asleep on his desk. He shook his head, somewhat annoyed, and walked over to headslap the agent into awareness.

But as he drew closer, he could see Tony wasn't sleeping peacefully. His hand twitched a little on the desk, and his breathing was irregular. His hair was matting to the frame of his face. _Was this what was going on with him at home? Nightmares for how many nights now? If this was PTSD, it could land him off duty, or worse, get someone killed. _ Gibbs went to put a hand on his shoulder when Tony shocked him by jumping up and yelling, quickly losing his balance and pitching into the cabinets behind his desk. Gibbs went to grab him by the shoulders to steady him, and saw the raw terror in his eyes. Tony was gasping, and looked confused for just a moment, and then said, relieved,"Boss?"

"Sit down, Tony, before you fall down," Gibbs said gently, wanting Tony to catch his breath. The younger man just nodded, allowing himself to be lead back down to his seat. He put his head in his hands for a moment, taking a deep breath, before looking back at Gibbs. He was embarrassed.

"Sorry about that, Boss."

Gibbs leaned back against Tony's desk. "This what's been happening the last several days?"

Tony frowned and looked away, and that was pretty much an answer, in Gibbs' estimation.

Gibbs sighed. "I told you to let me know if this was getting to be too much. Ah-" he warned, seeing Tony ready to argue. "I want you to go home, and take the rest of this week off. Go to the mountains. Try to unwind."

"Boss, I-"

"No. You aren't any good to me in the state you're in, which in all honesty, is making me think I should call Doc Cranston. So, I want you to take this seriously. And come back with your head on Monday. If you can't do that, I will make sure you get help so you're okay."

Tony was furious. He wanted to scream. But you don't scream at Leroy Jethro Gibbs. So he swallowed compulsively and just nodded his head, shaking now more with anger than from the dream. He knew in a way, Gibbs was right. But it still made him feel inept, and his jaw twisted a little.

Surprisingly, Gibbs put his hand on the back of Tony's neck and squeezed gently. "You have really been under it, Tony. Other men couldn't handle what you do, so please." It was a comforting tone. And it diffused his anger a little, since Gibbs never said "please".

He nodded again, still not looking at him, and said, "Fine." Gibbs shifted and removed the comforting hand, going back to his desk.

He said gently, looking back at Tony, "Now."

Tony sighed deeply, and got his things together. On his way out Gibbs called, "Keep your cell with you."

Tony scowled as he got on the elevator. He didn't see the deep worry pass over his Gibbs' face.

That night Tony called and left a message for Miranda, telling her he was free to go to the cabin in the Blue Ridge mountains whenever she wanted.


	16. Chapter 16

The next morning, he'd packed warm clothes, and heavier jacket, since snow was expected in the Blue Ridge mountains on Friday and Saturday. He hoped for lots of it, to put him in forced seclusion with Miranda. He needed to unwind and try to work out why things were getting to him so badly.

They rented a Tahoe, just to have the four wheel drive in case they got the predicted storm that would clear out sometime Saturday morning.

And he smiled to himself, because he packed his handcuffs as she requested. He picked up the rental in the morning, and resisted the temptation to call Ziva or McGee to see what was happening. He didn't even turn on the tv. He gave a lot of thought to what Gibbs said, and decided he was right. Though, he did feel a little like he was letting his mentor down. Tony had to do some thinking, and get his head on straight. He was hoping to do some hiking alone, and felt that Miranda would freely give him a few hours to himself each day. He always liked walking around on fresh snow, the way it absorbed sound and everything was so silent just after it stopped falling.

He went to the bank, dropped off dry cleaning, bought a bottle of wine, though she said she was fully stocked at the cabin. Not right to go empty handed.

He picked her up around 12:30, looking forward to hitting the road.

He helped her with her two rather heavy bags, throwing them into that back with a grunt.

"What's in those bags? Bricks?" he teased.

"I just needed to be prepared for anything."

"Anything, huh? Well, now I'm scared."

She laughed and unzipped her white puffer jacket and put on her seatbelt. She was practically bouncing with excitement.

They stopped once along the way, at a small café' to have lunch. She was sipping her coffee while he told her a story about one of his frat buddies. He could tell, though, that she was distracted. So he stopped, and started playing with her fingers on the coffee cup.

"Wanna tell me what's on your mind ?"

Her lashes were fluttering a little, and she looked down, biting her lip. "Uhhh, well, I sort of forgot to mention something."

"Uh-oh, I've been waiting for this. You're an alien."

"No."

"You're married."

"No!"

"You're a –"

She laughed, "Stop ! You're a jackass."

He smiled and said, "Okay, what's the issue?"

"Well, my cabin…is actually more of an estate house."

"And…I'm sorry, that's bad…why ?"

"Well, there's a lot of space, two floors, several stairwells and entrances. Way too much for me. So…I rent part of it out." She looked at him with a slightly pained expression.

"And someone else is going to be there this weekend."

"Yes."

"Lemme guess. It wouldn't be Michel, would it?"

She smiled and nodded. Then added quickly, "He has his own entrance, and the whole upstairs, and we won't even know he's there. We have the whole lower part of the house to ourselves."

He was a little annoyed, but, if there were that much space, it would be fine. And it wouldn't matter when he went on his hikes anyway.

She smiled hopefully. "You're not mad?"

"No. But I'm glad I brought my handcuffs. I may have to teach you a lesson."

Her eyes got wide with excitement, pupils dilating. They were like drugs to each other. _Probably not healthy, but really fun_, he thought.

"I'd like that," she said in a low, sexy purr. She leaned over to him, and gave him a searing kiss.

After they finished eating, they were just waiting for the check. He took the opportunity to ask her a little about her friendship with Michel. He couldn't help himself.

"So, ah, Michel said you had some things in common. I can see the art thing, pretty clearly, but there's more, right ?"

She looked at him for a moment, her smile had faded a little. She nodded. She looked down and took a shaky breath. "Well, I guess maybe better to just get it out now, and then it's done…"

He waited quietly while she seemed to gather herself.

"When my dad was alive, he had a house in D.C., not far from Anacostia Park. And we really didn't get along, but I still felt like I should go see him sometimes. You know, he's all I had left, even though it wasn't ideal." She looked at him for a moment, and then back to the table. "One night, while I was visiting him, two men broke into the house."

His stomach turned a little, knowing he wasn't going to like how this story went.

"They…came in, and held guns on us. And made my dad open his safe. Once they had anything of value…they…killed him." Tears were forming in her eyes, her arched brows in a crease. He hadn't seen her cry yet. When they started to fall, onto his hand as it was caressing her arm on the table, he was sorry he'd asked the question. It was painful to see her like this. She continued. 'They…shot him, in the head, and then they were going to…"she swallowed, closing her eyes for a moment. "Anyway, his upstairs tenant heard the shot and called the police, and they came pretty quickly so they weren't able to…to-"

"Okay..okay," he put his arms around her, trying to soothe her. When she was a bit calmer, he asked softly, "Michel…had something in common with that?"

"Oh, yes." She nodded slowly. "His parents were killed in front of him in Paris, on a side street by someone his father had pissed off. Something to do with money. Michel still doesn't know to this day…but he saw it happen, and then was orphaned. It sounded pretty bad. You know orphanages over there…not the best conditions."

Tony saw it now, why they seemed so connected. "I understand. And I'm so sorry. For both of you."

She looked at him with shining eyes. "And Michel thinks you're just a pretty face." She smiled and hugged him tightly.


	17. Chapter 17

Thursday morning it seemed the minute Ziva got in, Gibbs got the call.

Another body in Rock Creek Park.

She was a beautiful, 27 year old Hispanic girl, long ringlets of dark hair fanned out around her. The roses and candles creating a frame around her body that contrasted her dark clothes. The eggplant color blouse and long velvet skirt almost faded into each other in the shadows of the trees she was laid out by.

The girl's mother had reported her missing after the first 24 hours, but nothing official had gone in until 48.

Ziva wished Tony was with them. She understood Gibbs' brief explanation on why Tony needed some time off. He really wasn't looking well. But...still she found his presence comforting even when they fought. It bothered her a little that he went away with Miranda, when he should be home, resting.

Ducky was talking to the poor dead girl, Elmira Juarez, while he did his initial exam. All things were the same, except for the snake bite, which was found this time high up on the neck, almost at her chin. " Look what this bastard did to you my dear. That must have been so painful. There, there, we'll get you back to the Navy Yard and have a better chat." His tone was very sad, and reflected they way they all were feeling.

Chiu was doing the bag and tag with McGee while Ziva shot the photos. Gibbs was grateful now for the extra hands with Tony out. He was also glad Tony didn't have to do another one of these crime scenes in the state he seemed to be in. And this one turned up very quickly after the last. Things had escalated for the killer. Why was he in such a hurry now ? Maybe they were getting closer than they thought… Chiu was looking a little worn out, but was doing his best to work with their way of collecting evidence. McGee was looking pretty ill, too. They all needed the case solved before the team spun out of control.

Dillon was having a tougher time with helping the LEOs on crowd control. It seems the reporters had also turned out for this one as well. Gibbs frowned at the thought that now they would be getting more interference from higher ups with more media coverage. He knew they were always around somewhere, trying to catch video footage or photos.

Gibbs sighed. And then he flipped open his phone to call Fornell and fill him in.

Later that day, Ducky discovered the red carpet fibers Abby had found on the vinyl tarp under Petty Officer McKenna, were also in Elmira Juarez's hair. The killer was getting a little sloppy. Abby also revealed a partial print on one of the candles, a great victory, all things considered. But no matches could be found with it.

Gibbs sent Chiu out with Dillon to speak to Juarez's mother, her only family, and her friends at the Budding Beauty flower shop downtown, where she worked.

McGee was checking into her phone records, as well as financials.

"Ziva, what time is the Ramirez interview ?" Gibbs asked.

"One o'clock. I was going to leave...now, actually."

"I'm coming with you." he grabbed his badge and gun and walked out with her.

When they reached the Ramirez home, a small row hose on Slosson Drive, Gibbs noticed the meager furnishings, and how clean it was. They were people who took pride in who they were, and pride in their son. It was simple to see they were devastated. A picture of the murdered young man was sitting on an end table with some white lilies around it.

Mrs. Ramirez was lying down, overcome by grief and anxiety, but Mr. Ramirez was willing to talk.

He had salt and pepper hair, and large eyes that sat too closely together, making him look angry, even when his face was relaxed.

They'd gone over some of the basics again, and then Gibbs asked gently, "Was there anything your son liked to do, hobbies where he met up with others ? Did anything seem unusual about any of the people he associated with?"

"Mostly, he just went to school, and work. He was such a good boy, my Mark. He had a big heart too. He volunteered at St. Mary 's two nights a week."

Gibbs felt a twitch in his gut. This was _it._ This was what they were waiting for. He felt Ziva sit bolt upright next to him.

"Mr. Ramirez, do you know what department your son volunteered in?"

The man took a shaky breath in, and released it. "Ahh… yes. He volunteered in the Children's Mental Health Services. I think in the North Tower."

Ziva asked," Did he ever talk about people he met there?"

"No, mostly he spoke of the children he saw, and spent time reading to them when they had to wait to see doctors. He also did filing for them and sometimes answered the phones."

Gibbs called McGee right away as they stepped outside after the interview.

"Yeah Boss?"

"McGee, we're going over to Saint Mary's now to speak with The Children's Mental Health Services. Ramirez volunteered there. If we can figure out a list of of other volunteers or who he would have come into contact with-"

"We may find our killer," McGee said, already typing like mad on his keyboard.

"I'll call you on the way back."

He hung up and started the car, Ziva barely strapping herself in as he took off like a madman.

Constance Emmerson was one of those anal, uptight women who needed every " T" crossed and every "I" dotted. Gibbs loved those people.

"So, you can get us a list of all the specific volunteers who worked in the North Tower, and where they worked?"

"Yes, yes, of course, Agent Gibbs. I only need a moment. The Children's Mental Health area is actually fairly small compared to the some of the other areas we send volunteers to cover. Mr. Ramirez would have mostly been in contact with the three therapists who run it, the other volunteers who come in, and the children they help."

Gibbs shifted impatiently on his feet while Ziva was pacing behind him. They were in a small office that did all the volunteer coordinating.

The clerk handed Gibbs a list of about 200 names of volunteers spanning the last 6 months. It was a lot, but it was much better than thousands. And his fingers were itching, gut telling him their killer was likely to be amongst the names.

When they pulled up the long, winding driveway, Tony was struck by the immense size of the house. There were no other houses around it for miles. The trees were thick around both sides of the drive, and the house seemed to rise up out of the forest.

It was Tudor style, with a turret on one end, and chimneys that rose out of several spots on the roof. All the windows had fragmented panes, in little diamond shapes, and the sunlight reflected off them like they were dragon scales. Ivy crawled along much of the surface around the windows. It truly could have been in a magazine.

Tony pulled the truck up and parked behind the cargo van he assumed was Michel's.

He turned to Miranda, pulling the key out of the ignition," This place is beautiful. I can't believe how huge it is. And this, you called a cabin."

She smiled and shrugged, " Well it seems tacky to me to talk about your estate in the country when you first meet someone. It is pretty fabulous though. There's a large deck out back and a jacuzzi."

"Jacuzzi? I speak Jacuzzi." He grinned at her.

She giggled. "Well, lucky me, that you're bilingual," and she leaned over and kissed him, running her hands over his chest.

They groped each other a little while before deciding to unload the bags and go inside. It had gotten considerably colder out, and the sky was almost lilac with heavy snow clouds. Tony looked at the van parked in front of them.

" I would have figured Michel for a Jaguar or Mercedes kinda guy..."

"He uses the van when he come up because sometimes he brings up things to decorate with or work on projects. But...he does have a Jag." She smiled at how astute Tony was.

They dragged their bags inside, past the immense foyer and stairway leading to the second floor. There were antiques everywhere...more of a simple, French country style. There was more art here as well in every room, and large mirrors that wouldn't fit any wall in Tony's whole apartment. She lead him through a door into a whole other maze of rooms. The walls were bright golden yellow, and the furnishings dark wood with red velvet. A large marble fireplace geaced the left wall, flanked by windows out onto woods. It was very warm and inviting. He could see three doors to bedrooms on the right side, and also the large kitchen off the living room directly in front of him. The huge kitchen windows faced the back of the property, and there were French doors that opened up onto a deck, The view was stunning, He walked over to the windows and saw some of the valley below, beyond somewhat of a tree line out back. "Wow."

"You just have to remember, when you go on your hike, there's a pretty serious drop back there. If it snows, and I think we know it will, I just want you to be aware because the visibility will be poor."

He turned to her and smiled, running his hand through her hair and pushing it behind her ear. He had mentioned on the ride up, needing some time to himself, just to hike and think. And she had been nothing but supportive about it. "You're pretty cool, you know that?"

"Yes. I do know that. Now, how about we get a fire going in the living room and open some wine?"

"Sounds like a plan," he looked around the kitchen, "and maybe some food could be good too."

"Okay, I'll make you a deal," she said, pulling him in for a kiss. "You get the fire going, and I will make us a plate of fruit and cheese."

"Sounds like a fair deal to me," he smiled and pinched her as he walked back into the living room. "Oh, I didn't notice that when we came in," he said curiously as she was pulling things out of the fridge. He had been so busy checking it all out, that he'd overlooked it.

"What?"

"Look, on the table in front of the fireplace."

There sat two bottles of wine, and a small plate with almonds, crackers, and cheese on it. Next to it were two white roses, and a note.

Miranda walked over and picked up the note while Tony grabbed some almonds. She read it out loud. "Hope you have a wonderful weekend, M." She looked at the little plate. "Awww. Michel is the best." she took some cheese and a cracker and popped it in her mouth as she went to get the opener and glasses for wine.

He thought it was actually nice that Michel did that….but…he wasn't necessarily comfortable that the man could come into the space when he wanted.

"I thought you said **I** was the best," he said jokingly, as she leaned over to open the wine.

"Actually, I never said anything at all, as far as that goes. I may need to check a few more times before giving you the eval," she said teasingly while pouring the wine.

She handed him a glass.

"So...he hangs out down here sometimes too?"

"Well, when it's just us in the house, sure. But I can lock the door at the top of the stairs from this side and then the only way in or out upstairs is the entrance on the other side of the house. It's a bit maze-like. Kinda creepy but cool. Does it bother you he did that? I thought it was kind of sweet." she came over to stand beside Tony who was now lighting logs in the fireplace.

"No, you're right, it's very nice of him." He knew she and Michel were really close friends, so there was no point in making an issue of it.

He got the fire going, and the wood was starting to crackle. It smelled fantastic. Cedar was the best smelling wood to burn. It was so relaxing to him. He sat for a while, sipping the wine and watching the fire. Miranda was still shuffling things in and out of her bags into the larger bedroom. He poured himself another glass of wine, and was going to give her more but she hadn't had much of hers yet.

She came to join him after a while. It was already getting dark outside, but it made the fire seem even cozier. She hopped on top of his lap as he finished off his second glass. "Tasty," he said.

"Actually, Michel has a friend who makes wine, so we are constantly stocked with Merlot and Cabernet."

He smiled and put the glass down," I wasn't talking about the wine."

He pulled her to him and kissed her, their hands starting to roam all over each other. She unbuttoned his shirt, and he pulled her sweater up over her head, throwing it across the room while she giggled. They continued to kiss, and he started to feel a burning kind of heat inside him. She was grinding her hips against him, but they both still had their jeans and shoes on. He stood up, easing her down onto the couch. As he straightened up to pull off his shirt, he realized that the room was starting to spin. On only two glasses of wine?

He took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment to stop the room from its roller coaster ride.

"Tony?" she asked quietly, now standing next to him with her hand on his elbow.

"Yeah...I...feel a little off..." his words came out thickly. _Drugged_...he knew that feeling...it had happened once before. _Drugged through wine..._" There are no coincidences..." he slurred softly.

He stumbled away from her as she creased her brow, frowning at him. He got to his coat, hanging on the wrought iron coatrack in the corner. He took out his sig, taking off the safety, and he heard her gasp. "Miranda..." he was leaning against the wall now, unable to keep himself upright. Her cobra painting flashed through his mind, and the painting of the white roses...was she somehow involved? Was Michel? Fear and confusion were tumbling across his mind. He looked at the two white roses on the table, feeling dread.

"Tony, put the gun down...please...I don't know what's happening here, but you don't look good..." she was frightened, he could hear it in her voice. But was she frightened because she was worried about what he was doing, or because he'd figured her out? She had her hands up, walking slowly in his direction.

"Don't…"His vision was dimming, and he could no longer hold the gun as he slid down the wall...it drifted from his fingers and fell into his lap. "Miranda..." it came out a hoarse whisper as he began to lose consciousness. He could hear her voice, yelling angrily before he fell into the darkness.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N:** Okay- if you are liking this story – let's hear ya ! If you have any suggestions – go for it. We're cookin now ! May or may not update til Monday !

THANKS – GRACIAS – DANKA – DOMO – GRAZIE

He heard low voices talking. And then noticed his skin felt strange. And his head hurt a bit.

Tony suddenly remembered the danger he was in and his body twitched a little…he couldn't seem to wake up enough to move.

He heard more clearly now…

"No, Michel, I did not. You can't say that. Don't say that…" Miranda's voice was low and angry.

"Oh, oui', mon amour, yes I can. You saw eem on zee television. And you were so taken, I knew eeh was zee one. Zee eighth in zee series. You picked." Michel's heavy French accent, which she'd once thought of as romantic and exotic, now made his words sound all the more sinister. "Of course, you probably should have stopped to see zee rest of za news, ah? You might have known, what kind of case eeh was on."

She remembered they were in the kitchen downstairs, here in the mountains for a few days, and Michel was watching the news on tv. She had seen Tony for a moment on the screen, and said, "Wow, is he gorgeous." It was just in passing, before she turned back to what she was doing, and Michel had just smiled at her. She had been surprised and thrilled, when he called her two days later, telling her where she might run into Tony. The coffee shop…where Tony had fallen right into her hands…

Now she was looking at her lover, tied naked to the long wooden table in front of her, just a towel over his midsection, and blindfold over his eyes. He'd been unconscious for some time, though she tried to wake him several times, calling his name softly. There were ropes at his neck, wrists, and ankles, wrapped around and secured under the table to some kind of metal rings attached there.

Michel had carefully, almost lovingly, placed Tony on the table earlier, and washed him from a basin he had rolled over on a cart, and then shaved all his body hair off, except for his head. She watched in horrified fascination. She was confused herself, and was only now coming out of the shock of what was happening. Michel had come bounding down the stairs when Tony passed out. She thought he was going to help. Not grab her by the arms and drag her upstairs. And she hadn't expected him to tie her to the chair she was in either.

She had screamed at him angrily a few times, fighting and clawing once she realized he had maybe gone insane. But he just smiled, hurting her wrists as she fought him, and eventually subduing her. Then once bound to her seat, she begged Michel to check on Tony, knowing something was wrong with him, until she saw Michel carrying him into the room and lying him down on the table.

The large, rectangular room that was once used as a great room was dark. Velvet drapes covered most of the windows, but there was a sliver showing. She could see snow was starting to fall in large flakes against the darkness. She couldn't be sure what time it was. There were white pillar candles lit, around the room, and one track light from high up on the ceiling pointing down at the step ladder at the foot of the table, and in front of it, a large rectangle of white.

"So…this was…I don't **understand**, Michel. What is it you're doing?" her voice was shaky. Michel was her friend, she just couldn't wrap her mind around what had just happened. It was like she didn't know who he was at all. And she was becoming terrified for Tony.

He was rolling the basin away now, and then she noticed all the carts against the wall in the dimly lit room.

"You know, Miranda, I think you must know, you just haven't realized eet. We are both artists, and zees is my great work." Michel walked over to the opposite wall of the room, where he pulled down a dark cloth off a large painting. There were at least 5 or 6 more canvases stacked behind it. It was an immense painting, in red-brown hues, of an Egyptian goddess, surrounded by patterned circles which flowed out from behind her, and a border of intertwining snakes…cobras. It was an amazing work. The goddess herself was painted as a human with a serpent headdress, the style reminiscent of chiaroscuro, as it had been layered up. She knew she had smelt the turpentine up here, but, something else as well.

She looked back at the blank canvas at the other end of the room. Blinking, she said," I…don't understand…"

"You will," he smiled at her.

She heard a soft moan from Tony, on the table. "Michel, Tony hasn't done anything to you, please, Michel, _please_, let him go…I don't understand what you're doing. Is it about us, Michel? Are you angry with me?" she was desperate, and she was starting to cry.

"Ah, no. Eeh has done nothing, nothing wrong at all." He looked down for a moment, stroking Tony's hair while she saw him flinch in his bonds. "Eeh has been chosen," Michel looked at her through his round rimmed glasses, "by you. Eeh is zee one I needed to complete my series. Zey are very powerful, zees paintings, because of zee sacrifice, zee great worship in zee study, life and death. And eeh will be treated very well, ees death will be honored an remembered. Part of eehm will live forever, een my work. I am almost finished with zees collection. I will have it shipped to Paree on Monday. Then, we are leaving zee country."

Now she was crying harder, still confused, and frightened. Michel was going to kill Tony! But she still didn't understand why.

"You need…Tony? To finish the series?" she saw Tony's hand flexing and pulling slightly against the ropes, his breath now becoming more noticeable, and rapid with the movement of his chest.

"Shhh," Michel told her, holding a finger to his lips. "We must be respectful of zee next part of zees process."

He turned and rolled over another cart. There was a woven type of basket on it, with a ringed handle on the lid. He opened it, and gently reached in.

The black and cream headed snake swirled around his arm as he lifted it away from the basket.

Miranda was too overcome by her immediate terror of the serpent to make a sound.

Tony had come to full awareness, he couldn't see but figured out he had been blindfolded, and worse, shaved. He shivered. He heard the exchange between Michel and Miranda. He was at once completely horrified, because there was a good chance he was about to die an awful death. But at least, he knew Miranda was innocent. She hadn't been in on it… at least knowingly.

He gasped when he felt it meet his skin. The snake had been released onto his body, and was undulating up his left side.

His voice was tight and came out a little like an exhalation, "Miranda…"

She let out a sob, watching the cobra's tongue flicking over his sternum. "Tony…I'm sorry…"

"Not your fault…sorry I pulled the gun on you-" he cut his words short, feeling the conveyer belt of scales sliding around his stomach and chest. He could hardly breathe now, knowing what was going to happen.

Miranda saw Michel take a stick, and nudge the cobra a little, antagonizing it. It's head came up, hood flaring.

Michel took his other hand, which had a large golden metal item in it, and raised it. She could see it was an ankh.

When he quickly banged the table with it, the cobra struck.

She squeezed her eyes shut at Tony's agonized scream.


	19. Chapter 19

The bullpen was buzzing with excitement. It was 18:00 hours and they were all going through parts of the volunteer list, getting addresses and phone numbers to start narrowing in on.

Chiu looked very pleased, and even Dillon managed to crack a smile.

Since the next day was Friday, they still had the chance to interview the Doctors and staff at the Children's Mental Health Services before the weekend emptied the offices out. Gibbs already told Chiu and Ziva to go first thing in the morning, while he and Dillon would go and start checking out suspects, one by one if necessary, off the list.

Gibbs thought about calling Tony, to share in the news that there was finally a solid lead, but then decided against it. He had told him to go and do some relaxing, and thinking…

He felt confident now that they would work this through, every day until they found the sick villain responsible for so many horrible deaths. He just wished they had caught the break earlier…and hoped they would be in time to save the suspected eighth victim.

"Everyone in tomorrow at 07:00." None of them looked unhappy about it. But they didn't budge either.

"We would like to make sure our lists and addresses are complete," Ziva said softly.

All their eyes told him the same. He shook his head and smiled, "Okay."

Miranda heard Tony moaning in pain after the cobra bite, and he had become a bit paler, sweat beading on his head.

Michel waited a while before removing the blindfold and bringing yet another item to the table. It was a jar, filled with what looked to be oil, solids sitting at the bottom.

Tony was incredibly weak now, and his sense of reality seemed to be altered. He could see what Michel was doing, but he couldn't do more than squeak out a sound or two. He wanted to tell the man he was a sick bastard and to go to Hell.

Miranda was exhausted, drained from the trauma of what was happening in front of her. She watched Michel in silence, as he dipped his hands in the oil and started from Tony's feet, coating his skin with it. Michel uttered some words, but they were all in French. She didn't know what he was saying. She got fearful again, as he lifted the towel across Tony's midsection, and didn't even stop for a second in doing the same to his intimate parts. But Michel covered him directly after, continuing up his body, and then rolling him slightly to get the undersides of his arms, back and legs. Tony's eyelids drooped lazily, and she thought maybe he was near passing out again. The cobra bite on his neck was raw and angry. The only way she knew he might still be conscious was the rapid and shallow breathing.

Michel finished what he was doing and returned the jar to one of the carts by the wall.

"Not…going..to…" Tony rasped out, struggling to speak. He was looking at Michel now, anger in his eyes.

"Ohhh, I will. But your friends will have zee pleasure of finding you. I will make sure of it, before Miranda and I get on a plane."

She picked her head up, angrily shouting at him, "I'm not going anywhere with you. I'm not going. Michel, if you let him go, maybe I'll change my mind." She was trying to bargain.

_You can't bargain with crazy people, Miranda._ Tony willed her to be quiet, as he was losing the ability to speak. _Please be quiet and just do what he says._ Tony knew it was too late for him, but maybe she could get away later…

She had other ideas.

"That's the only way Michel. Otherwise forget it."

The man was looking at her, almost pensively, and the room was dangerously quiet for a while. An ugly look passed over his face. He quickly approached her, placing both hands on the chair arms as he loomed over her.

"You would betray me, for eehm? We are zee same, you and I." His tone was lethal.

_Please shut up, Miranda…_Tony wished he could do something, anything to distract Michel, but he was losing his grip on consciousness, his heartbeat pounding in his ears.

"Screw you, Michel," she spat out, "I could never be like you." Her hazel eyes were aflame with anger. She was shaking, wishing she could scratch his eyes out.

Michel stared at her for another moment, and then stood up. He looked down at her arm, and rubbed her hand, squeezing it for a moment.

She was frightened again. Tony painfully turned his head, just a little to see them.

The wide plank floorboards creaked a bit, as Michel quietly moved, standing closer beside her chair. He stroked her throat now, looking at her with tenderness.

"Ohh, mon amour, zat being ze case, you will lie next to eehm at zee final resting place." He placed both hands around her neck before she could answer, and she gasped, struggling for air, but there was none.

Tony wanted to scream for Michel to stop, he could see Miranda looking at him with frightened, pleading eyes. She was turning colors…

"No…"was all he could rasp out, and it was ignored,

He saw her eyes roll up in her head, and eventually her body convulsed.

Tears rolled out of Tony's eyes, when he saw Michel back away finally, when she was dead.


	20. Chapter 20

They were all there by the time Gibbs came in. He smiled a little at the sight. The hopelessness was gone, replaced by determination.

In a way, he was sorry Tony couldn't see what was happening, since the case had really gotten to him.

"Dillon, you ready?"

"More than ready, Sir!" Dillon said in a rich baritone that was rarely heard.

"Ziva, Chiu, you set?"

"Yes, Gibbs. McGee gave us all copies of the information. We are ready to go."She was putting her coat back on. She had worn a heavier one, for the snow that was falling outside.

"Everyone checks in with me on the hour or sooner if there's news. McGee is the checkpoint if you need directions or information." Though he felt optimistic they would finally get the bastard, he felt a twinge inside, a flash of doom in his gut. "Ziva, you and Chiu don't split up. No one out alone on any interviews at this stage." They all nodded consent.

"Let's go."

Tony was in Hell. Michel had taken Miranda's body from the chair and put it somewhere. And had returned to the room, zipping open a bag on one of his carts. After a moment, he appeared in Tony'cs direct vision.

Tony still had tears on his face, his breathing coming in short gasps, and fear rose in him again as he saw Michel hold up a syringe and gently move his arm to give him the injection.

_Oh God..._

He flinched ever so slightly at the prick and burn sensation, staring at Michel's face, which gazed impassively at him. He wanted to move. Get off the table and kill Michel for what he'd done to Miranda. _Miranda_...the pain he felt inside was unbearable, and all he could do was replay the picture of Michel strangling the life out of her again.

He deserved to die, for not stopping Michel from killing her. Another wave of tears accumulated in his eyes. He realized he was feeling stranger still after the injection...he was still able to blink and move his eyes, though it felt like there were cotton balls behind them...but his breathing...was he still breathing ? Yes he must be...he was still alive. He just couldn't take a really deep breath in. And was the room moving?

"You cost me Miranda." Michel's cold voice came from the other side of the room as he rolled another cart next to the table." But, ultimately, zee art is zee most important thing. Eet will live on long after we are both gone. And you have been purified now, by zee bite of my beautiful cobra." He sighed, walking over to look down at Tony." I think I can remove zees now. Distasteful, ah?" he started untying the ropes, because he knew Tony couldn't go anywhere with what he'd injected him with.

Michel took the ropes, and the chair Miranda had been in, and put them away.

Tony wished desperately that Gibbs would show up, before the madman had a chance to...do what exactly ? He still wasn't sure what the madman was going to do next. But it would have to do with his blood being removed from his body. Tony felt his grip on reality slipping, he was starting to go numb.

"I think we are ready." Michel said in a more relaxed voice, as he rolled the cart closer to Tony's right side. " But, allow me to give you a better view," Michel said, picking up Tony's head. And sliding something like a neck pillow under it. He could see the cart now, and the large white rectangle at the foot of the table.

On the cart were needles for drawing blood and tubing, and a large ceramic bowl. Also a bottle of what looked to be oil.

Michel got the needle prepared, and then rolled Tonys arm to position it up, so he could get a vein. He took a rubber strip and tied it around his upper arm. Tony heard the snap of it,and watched with horror as Michel stuck the needle in, attached the tubing, and put the end of it into the bowl as Tonys blood flowed slowly into it. Michel released the rubber strip, placing it back on the cart.

He picked up the oil and added it to the bowl. As he put the bottle down, he said,"Zee venom makes your blood a bit thinner, easier to work with. Eet ees in essence, an alchemical change."

_To work with?_It suddenly became clear to him, why he was going to die in this room.

Michel looked at him, tilting his head." I can see why Miranda liked you..." Michel said softly, raising a hand to stroke his face and hair, while the other rested on his leg." You're a bit older zan zee others, but...a beautiful vessel nonetheless."

_Fuck off, you psychotic Sonofabitch._Those hands touching him had brutally killed Miranda.

"I don't think you know, how special you are, being zee eighth. You are zee one, to tie zehm all together...eight gods of creation..." he turned, and checked the bowl, half way full with Tonys blood. He picked up a flat stick, stirring the bowl. And then looked back at Tony.

"You know, many cultures believe zee blood has eets own spirit, eets own magic. And een ancient times, humans were sacrificed to zee gods for zee benefit of society. Zose people had a noble place, a divinity all zer own, a direct relationship with zee gods. Quite an honor, oui?"

_It would be an honor to break your neck_. Tony thought about all the poor victims, who had endured this torture.

"Ah, I can tell, you are skeptical, mon ami. But, eet ees true. And when I lie your body to rest in zee park, next to Miranda, you will both have zee proper presentation to honor your place in helping me create the living door to the divine ones."

Tony imagined how awful it would be for the team to find him and Miranda, lying dead amongst the snow with roses and candles...Gibbs...he thought about how close they had become...Gibbs was like a father to him. He truly loved the man. This would hurt him, and Ziva and McGee...they were all his family. He hated to think about how Abby would take it...but what choice was there now ? His luck had run out.

He was startled out of his thoughts by Michel removing the needle from his arm. The blood continued to drip down, and Michel applied some pressure with a small cloth to staunch the bleeding.

After a moment, Michel looked into Tonys eyes. "I hope you will be able to see your own immortality, in zee work."

Michel took the bowl, and waked away getting something from the carts along the wall. Then, he heard Michel opening something, and in a few moments he could smell turpentine. He heard a rubbing type sound. Then Tony saw him on the step ladder, holding the bowl in one hand, and painting with his blood on what he knew now was a large canvas.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/ N:**I am in candle light. We had a snowstorm that knocked out power. We did what we could in the daylight to move the cars ( trees coming down everywhere) and get some things done. So here I am, in the dark, no heat. But what am I doing ? Writing more chapters on Venom on my iPad until the juice runs out. Why ? Because my readers ROCK YO! You guys are good to me. Keep the love comin'! Will post this when I can...

By 13:00 hours, Gibbs and Dillon had spoken to 7 people on the list of volunteers, questioning them about their time spent volunteering and reviewing background McGee updated periodically. It was a lot of information. But they would spend the next week if necessary, covering all the names until they got a lead, or the killer himself.

Ziva and Chiu checked in, they had interviewed the office staff, three doctors, two therapists and volunteers in for the day at the hospital. No one seemed too suspicious, but they would also follow up at the homes of the doctors. Ducky and Abby had zeroed in on their suspect or suspects being highly intelligent, educated, and well traveled.

All day McGee had his hands full, looking into each background of the people allocated on the first list. He was overwhelmed, but at this point would sleep at his desk if he had to.

They all returned at the same time, around 18:00 hours to regroup and compared notes.

Ziva wolfed down a sandwich at her desk, while Gibbs was checking in with McGee. Chiu and Dillon were by the window, talking about the interviews as well.

She sighed. They were going to work all weekend, and even through the snow if it meant finding the Snakebite Killer. But she was imagining Tony, warm and curled up with his girlfriend, in the cabin up at the Blue Ridge mountains. She snorted, a little in disgust as she picked up the card on Miranda's art in the gallery. And then she picked up the other, looking at the picture of Michel Gravois, Miranda's fancy French gallery owning friend.

McGee had been about to ask her something, walking over to her desk, and he caught a glance at the card in her hand. His eyes widened a little. Then he looked at her, a little puzzled and said,"I didn't put him on your list for today...how did you know to interview him ?"

She was confused and looked back at the card. "I do not understand, McGee."

"Michel Gravois was a volunteer at the Children's Mental Health at St. Marys. I had him on the list I prepared for tomorrow..."

She looked at the card, and then grabbed the one featuring Miranda. "This is Tonys girlfriend, McGee, and she is friends with Michel Gravois. This cannot be a coincidence." She had an uneasy feeling.

"_Problem_, McGee?" Gibbs said as he walked over to them. Chiu and Dillon looked up from where they stood talking.

"Ahhh, I dunno Boss..."

Ziva was punching in the web address for Michel Gravois while McGee and Gibbs looked over her shoulder.

She read aloud, "Michel Gravois is a world renowned artist who's work encompasses multi cultural concepts of life, death, and rebirth, in an extraordinarily striking series of spiritual artworks and techniques. He has traveled to Asia and the Middle east to study symbolism and regional theology, incorporating ancient and powerful images into his prolific works, making them the masterpieces of todays world of art."

They were all silent. There was a picture of Gravois on the screen.

"And this guy knows Tony's girlfriend?" Gibbs asked with a knot growing in his gut.

"Yes," Ziva said as she clicked on the "Collections" button. Three choices came up. She scrolled over "Shamanistic Journeys", then over "The Shakti Queen" and then rested the cursor on "Rebirth of the Ogdoad". She knew about Abby's theory, and she felt a tingle of fear run through her as she clicked the link.

Eight rectangular icons came up, seven of them filled with an image and enlargement button. Below was a note. She read it aloud again.

"This series of eight large paintings will be shown in Paris at Galleries Rue D'Jermaine in January. Please contact Michel for further details." Under the type, centered below was a small symbol, a snake eating it's tail in the form of an eight.

She clicked on one of the small pictures, entitled Amanuet, and it enlarged to show a reddish brown hued painting of a snake headed goddes, surrounded by a frame of cobras. She felt suddenly sick.

McGee chimed in now from his computer, tension in his voice, "Boss...the upload dates for that series were the day after every one of our victims was found..."

"It's him...he used the blood...the blood to make the paintings..." Chiu said incredulousy as he stared at the screen.

"Tony..." Ziva breathed, her eyes wide with fear. She turned to Gibbs, who was already on the phone, scowling.

"It's going to voicemail." Gibbs felt a chill run through him. "McGee -"

"No fix, Boss, the phone isn't on or working. Trying Miranda Bianchi's cell..." McGee had seen her name on the gallery card. After a few moments, he shook his head, looking distressed. " No fix o hers either."

"Get me the address of that cabin, now ! And I want Gravois' home address. Chiu, Dillon, go to the Gallery and see if Mr. Gravois is there. Ziva, keep trying Tony in case that phone gets turned on."

"Do you think they're both in on it ?" McGee asked apprehensively, "Gravois and Tony's girlfriend?".

"For Tonys sake, I hope to God not." Gibbs stormed out of the bullpen.

Tony couldn't tell what time of day it was anymore, or keep his mind focused. His body hurt everywhere, his neck throbbed where the cobra had bitten him. But he still couldn't move a muscle. He felt hot...almost like he had a fever.

Michel had completed several layers of the painting, which was taking subtle form, almost like a shadow on the canvas. It was the image of a frog headed god, with reeds swaying behind him, and a variation of the intertwined cobras around the frame. He left Tony alone for a few hours, to get some rest before doing more work on his grand masterpiece. Tony drifted in and out of consciousness. He welcomed the darkness, wanted it to take him from the sea of pain and despair he was in.

He thought maybe the venom cocktail's effects were subsiding a little, he opened his eyes and the room had seemed to stop moving. He tried to take a deeper breath in and got about half way...an improvement. Could he move ? He tried, hard, but just twitched slightly and stilled, sweat now emerging on his face.

Just then, Michel came into the room.

"Ah, you are awake, I see." He put his coffee cup down next to Tonys head."I think eets time we get back to work."

_No no no._..Tony wanted to yell, but, the barest moan escaped his lips.

"Mon ami, zees will help greatly," He heard Michel say as he was injected again with the cocktail.

He closed his eyes for a moment to block out the image of Michel leaning over him, stroking his face.

He felt hotter and hotter...as Michel smiled, running knuckles lazily down his neck. He thought the room must be on fire. His vision again played tricks on him, as everything seemed to shift and move..

An involuntary whimper left his throat.

After about ten minutes or two hours for all he knew, he could feel Michel touching his arm again, and the snap of the rubber being tied off above his elbow. There was the prick of the needle, and he felt a strange disconnection happening while he knew his blood was being drained into the ceramic bowl. He was thirsty. And so, so tired.

"Yes, mon ami, you just rest," Michel crooned, placing a strangely gentle kiss upon his head.

Gibbs was on the edge. He had been the one to push Tony to take the weekend off with Miranda...and now he had a terrible feeling they were running out of time. It was 19:00 hours. Gravois was not at home or his gallery, and there was no cell signal to track...

He asked Ducky to prepare two of the venom kits and load them in the truck. He called the LEOs up in the town Miranda's place was in, but they said without a warrant would just " pass by." The snow was heavier up there...he knew the locals would not be in such a hurry because of the weather. In the end, he had screamed at them, trying to convey that it was possibly a serial killer at the address along with his agent.

"Ah, God," he scrubbed his hands over his face. He turned to Ziva.

"His phone is still off, Gibbs," she said tightly.

"Let's go. Now." He barked it out, grabbing his coat.

Chiu suddenly blocked his way, "Were coming too. Tony is a good man." He saw Gibbs look at him for a moment, and then nod. " I'm hoping we find him just having fun in a jacuzzi."

"From your mouth to Gods ears," Gibbs muttered as he continued barreling out of the office with all of them in tow.

When they got to the garage, Ducky and Palmer were both waiting, with a second truck.

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at them.

"If Anthony is in danger, especially from this nightmarish killer, you cannot administer the antivenom yourself, Jethro. You'll need our help. we have everything already packed." Ducky was staring At Gibbs, unwavering.

"Okay, Duck, but you and Palmer will stay put until we say it's clear."

"Agreed."

"Dillon, Chiu, with them. Ziva, McGee with me."He shot a backward glance at Ducky, "And Chiu drives, Duck. "

No one argued.


	22. Chapter 22

Ziva kept trying Tony's phone the whole way up. They knew it was certain now he was in trouble. He would never break Gibbs' rule on being unreachable.

Gibbs did his best with navigating the roads, since the snow got continually worse as the neared the mountains.

He would never forgive himself if Gravois got his hands on the young man he thought of as his own family. Tony had been through so much this year...**"Dammit,**" Gibbs growled as he hit the steering wheel hard with his fist.

After a moment, McGee said, "He's okay. He has to be okay...maybe they just went out..."

"And they both turned off their cell phones, McGee ?" Ziva quipped instantly.

McGee was quiet. She knew he was sick with worry. They all were.

After a moment, McGee said,"So Gravois was volunteering at the hospital, where he met some of his victims, but never gave them his cell or home number. He used the hospital to cover his tracks...by making them call him there. They weren't all volunteers though..."

"He could have met them in other places, even at the gallery and told them to call him at the hospital, sounding like a good Sumerian."

"Samaritan. Good Samaritan. And yes, he was extremely clever. But he's been taking victims more rapidly..."McGee trailed off.

"He knew we were getting closer. He was running out of time. And decided to finish his work and leave the country with it." Gibbs said angrily. "Miranda didn't meet Tony just by chance."

"You think they _targeted_ him from one of the crime scenes? They were _watching us_?" Ziva asked, dark eyes glittering.

"From the crowd or the tv. It might be both of them. It looks that way." Gibbs said it softly now, not wanting them to know how overwhelmed with anxiety he was feeling. Tony had been gone a day and a half...the victims only lasted two to three days...

"He painted...with their blood..."McGee said it, unable to comprehend the insanity of it.

"If he and Miranda have harmed Tony-" Ziva began.

"God help them," Gibbs finished.

The snow was making the roads up on the mountain difficult. It had at least stopped for the time being, the sky clearing and giving way to a full moon. Its light helped them figure out the winding, only half plowed roads.

It was 23:15 when they finally pulled into the long drive to the estate, and Gibbs and Chiu both shut the lights off on the vehicles as they slowly pulled up.

"Wow, this is huge," McGee said, as they took in the house, some of it's windows illuminated and one of the several chimneys billowing steamy smoke from the roof.

"Tony's car..." Ziva said, pointing at the rental they found out he'd taken for the trip. It was covered in snow, parked behind a van.

Gibbs' cell vibrated. He picked it up.

"Gibbs."

_"I got you the warrant,"Fornell said and added,"and we faxed it to the LEOs an hour ago and called them, but the on duty said he had to alert his chief before they sent out the cars...and the chief was out. Probably at the local Donut Shop. But you should have backup soon."_

"I'm not waiting til they get here with the damned warrant, Fornell," Gibbs ground out.

_"Didn't think you would. Good luck, I hope your boy is okay. Look out for my people, Gibbs."_

They hung up.

The agents exited the car, feet landing in the powdery white snow. Gibbs saw Chiu and Dillon getting out of their vehicle, and closed the doors leaving Ducky and Palmer inside.

Gibbs pointed to them and circled, the silent instruction to enter from the back. Ziva and McGee followed him. He tried the handle on the large, arched top door. It was pushed it gently. It creaked in a low groan.

The foyer was dimly lit. To the right rose the stairway, music could be heard from somewhere above. He pointed to Ziva and McGee, and motioned for them to go forward down the hallway on the ground floor. He began his ascent up the stairs, hoping they wouldn't squeak.

Ziva and McGee silently entered the living room, seeing the fireplace on. From the angle they were at, they could see the back of the couch, and dark wavy hair dangling off the arm closest to them. Ziva looked at McGee, pointing at herself and he nodded.

She circled quietly around the front of the couch with her gun raised. And then McGee saw her brows crease into a confused frown as she relaxed her posture back a bit. He joined her and saw Miranda Bianchi's clearly dead form laid out across the couch, light from the fireplace gracing her still, white features.

"Maybe she wasn't in on it," McGee said in a low murmur. "But where's Tony and Gravois ?"

They suddenly saw Agent Chiu, trying gently to open the kitchen door from outside.

Ziva carefully let him in. "Dillon?" She whispered.

"There's another back door and an outside stairwell on the side of the house, he's covering it,"Chiu said softly, shaking off the snow.

They looked right and saw the door that lead out the kitchen to the other end of the house.

She whispered into her com,"Gibbs, I'm coming to back you up. Dillon is covering an outside stairwell on the other end. McGee and Chiu can clear moving towards him...Gibbs, we found Miranda. She's dead."

"Copy that," he came through softly.

"Did you find Tony?"she asked as she moved down the hallway, back to the stairs.

"Get up here now,"was all he said in a hushed and urgent tone.

Gibbs had been making his way room to room, as the dimly lit upper floor seemed like a large railroad apartment with a few smaller bedrooms off the main sweep.

He heard the music, louder now...it was classical, playing off a radio or stereo up ahead of him.

Something up here smelled different than the cedar from the fireplace downstairs. Sharp like pine, and something else...coppery.

It was turpentine, and blood.

He saw light coming from an open doorway to his right. He stopped, just next to it in the shadows, barely letting out his breath. He hesitated a moment, hearing a floorboard squeak behind him. His heart jumped but it was Ziva. He lowered the gun he had instinctively raised her way. He pointed to the room he was about to enter, motioning her to cover his six.

He closed his eyes for just a second, silently praying they would not find Tony dead.


	23. Chapter 23

He lightly sprang into the doorway, and nearly choked at what he saw. His hands trembled, keeping the gun raised and looking around the large room where his agent, his friend, was lying almost naked on a table, pale and unmoving.

He heard Ziva gasp behind him.

He ran to the table, calling softly,"Tony," and took in the fact there was no color left in the younger man's face, even his lips. His eyes were closed, hair framing his face in damp spikes. "Ahh, God, don't do this to me..."

Gibbs raised his hand to check for a pulse, taking note of the fang marks on Tony's neck. Fear gripped him so badly, he almost couldn't force his fingers to rest on the pale skin.

Ziva moved to stand across from him, on the other side of Tony's head, silent with tears welling in her dark eyes. She saw the look on Gibbs' face.

"Gibbs...is he...?"she couldn't say it.

Gibbs shook his head sighing in relief. Tony's skin was hot to the touch, too hot, and his pulse was erratic but detectible.

Gibbs looked at her and said in a low stream,"Go get Ducky and Palmer. Get them up here fast. I will clear the rest of the floor." She nodded and took another look at Tony, her lip trembling as one of the tears fell from her eye.

"Duck, Ziva,s coming to escort you up. Tony's in bad shape. You gotta help him, Duck."

"We will, Jethro,"Ducky came over the com by return. "We'll be right there."

Gibbs gave Tony another concerned look, pushing his sweaty hair off his face. "Tony, we've got you now. I dunno know if you can hear me...But you're gonna be okay. Ducky's bringing the antivenom. I'm gonna go get that sick bastard, but I'm gonna be back as soon as I can."

He stroked Tony's face for a moment, with anguish in is pale blue eyes, and left the room.

He continued down the expanse of the second floor, room by room, until he came to a windowed door that opened to an outside stairwell. He saw footprints in the snow, leading down past a large figure, with bright red blood seeping into the pure white around it. It was Dillon.

He ran down the steps, kneeling at Dillon's side, and looked for a pulse. He found none and frowned sadly.

He looked up sharply, and saw other footprints now, coming from the back door, and overlapping the ones that went from Dillon towards the woods in back of the estate.

Gibbs knew McGee and Chiu had pursued Gravois into the moonlit woods, and he was armed.

Chiu and McGee were plunging ahead, dodging trees and slipping in the cold white powder. The moon had allowed them to follow Gravois' tracks. Just as they broke a small clearing, McGee stumbled, slipping and falling against a tree.

Chiu turned back to see what had happened when a bullet ripped through his shoulder, causing him to cry out and drop his gun into the deep snow. He immediately grimaced in pain and held his hand over the wound.

"Chiu!" McGee cried, coming to the man's side. He saw the bullet wound and took off his jacket, placing it over the man.

"Just a flesh wound. Go, **go**!"

McGee nodded and got up, continuing out to the clearing but staying carefully with the tree line. He narrowed his eyes, looking for any movement. The tracks had veered off to the left. He stayed low. The wind was cutting through him, the cold biting. There was a cluster of pines, casting shadows onto the sparkling blue expanse. He made for them carefully, gun raised.

He heard a twig snap in the silence and froze. He never expected Michel to have jumped him from a tree above.

Gibbs found Chiu on the ground where McGee had left him, shivering and bleeding from his shoulder wound into the Probie's jacket.

"I'm okay, Chiu reassured him. "But McGee went after him." Gibbs nodded and took off again.

Gibbs ran, along the tree line where he saw McGee's tracks, his breath coming out in steamy puffs. The snow was deep enough to hinder his speed and throw off his footing, but he made it to the edge of the drop in time to see Michel Gravois dragging McGee, to throw him over the edge.

"Federal Agent! Throw out your weapon and let him go!" Gibbs yelled it loudly and it echoed across the snow covered valley.

"Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs," he began, raising the gun to McGee's head. "You look just as threatening een person as you do on zee tv. You have interrupted my work, and it makes me very angry when people do zat."

Gibbs tried to see if McGee was hurt. There was a little trickle of blood from a cut on his right temple, and he looked a littler dazed, but otherwise seemed fine.

"Did Miranda interrupt your work, Michel ? Is that why you killed her ?"

He saw Gavois waver for a moment, hand shaking as he continued to point the gun at McGee's head.

"She was an unfortunate miscalculation on my part. But, she did bring me Tony. And zat was to be zee crowning glory of my series, Agent Gibbs."

"Well, let my agent go, Gravois, maybe we can let you get back to it." _Over __my __dead __body, _he thought.

There was nothing but the sound of the wind blowing for a moment.

"Take the shot, Boss." McGee said softly. "This bastard _hurt_ Tony. _Take.__The.__Shot."_

Gibbs saw Gravois tensing up, Gibbs had his sight right between the man's eyes.

Gravois looked around for a moment, and then laughed, moonlight bouncing off his round glasses.

But after a moment it stopped.

"I think I'm finished, but I may as well ruin your eve-"

Gibbs shot him, before he could finish the sentence he knew would be followed by McGee's death.

Thankfully, the gun fell from Gravois' hand, as his body crumpled to the ground, partially swallowed up in the snow. McGee swayed, and almost fell himself if it were not for Gibbs catching him and pulling him up.

"Thanks Boss," McGee muttered.

Gibbs stared down at Gravois. "Those artistic types are always too wordy."

Gibbs got McGee and Chiu back into the warm house, McGee now helping Chiu apply pressure to the through n' through. Unfortunately, the warmest place was by the fire, next to Miranda Bianchi's corpse. He saw police lights bouncing through the windows. "Better late than never," he said disgustedly.

He prayed Ducky was able to help Tony and ran up the stairs.

When he entered the creepy painting studio, he saw Palmer holding up an I. V. bag, and Ziva holding one of Tony's hands. Ducky was preparing an injection. An oxygen tank was on the floor, and they had a mask over Tony's face.

"You give him the antivenom Duck?" he asked worriedly.

"There is a _process_, Jethro, which has steps and must be adhered to when administering an antivenom kit. Otherwise, I could kill our Anthony before he even gets to a hospital. You have to do a small test first, for anaphylaxis, then run an I.V., and the antivenom is injected into the fluid, not directly into the body. We have done so, and hopefully we got here in time to prevent long term organ damage." Ducky stopped thoughtfully. "Oh dear...I suspect you can hear me, can't you Tony? Well, the next step will help you my dear friend. It's an adrenaline shot, to help pick up the respiration and other functions slowed by the paralytic effects of the venom."

Tony was so still...Gibbs wasn't sure he could tell if Tony was breathing. "An ambulance is coming, for Tony, and we had some trouble with Gravois, but he won't be doing anymore painting. McGee and Chiu will be okay, but Chiu took one to the shoulder…and Dillon' s dead."

They were silent for a moment.

"Ah, Mister Palmer, be ready to hold that bag still...when I administer the adrenaline, he may move around a bit. " Ducky looked at Gibbs, raising his brows. Gibbs understood and moved forward, taking Tony's other hand.

"Ready, Doctor Mallard," Palmer said, staring at Tony hopefully.

Ducky gave the injection quickly, and stood back.

There was nothing. They all willed Tony to visibly breathe, to move, or open his eyes.

The change came subtly at first, Ducky checked Tony's heartbeat with a stethoscope. He seemed to be breathing a bit better.

Gibbs could hear the LEOs piling in downstairs, and the ambulance siren in the distance. _Thank __God_, he thought.

Suddenly, Gibbs and Ziva were jerked forward. Tony's eyes opened as he started gasping deeply for breath, and coughing fitfully.

His brows came together as he looked around him in confusion, his eyes filled with terror. He fought them for a few second, pulling his hands away from them to tear off the oxygen mask. But his movements were uncoordinated.

"Tony," Gibbs called his name, trying to calm him, but he continued to fight, clumsily sitting up and almost falling off the table.

"Stop..." the word was followed by a desperate groan, as he suddenly got weaker. Ziva quickly put her arms around him while he let out a strangled cry, tears starting to stream down his face.

"It is over, we are here," she soothed in a low voice, into his ear.

But it was over that quickly. She felt him go limp in her arms, and almost went off the edge of the table with him, if not for Gibbs and Palmer holding him by each of his shoulders, easing him back down while supporting his head.

Ducky let out a shaky breath, "Oh my. I wondered about that."

The E.M.T's had perfect timing, and rolled in the gurney while Ducky filled them in on Tony's condition.

"Will he be alright, Gibbs?" Ziva asked in a frightened, small voice.

He watched them lifting Tony off the wooden table where seven people had died.

He put his arms around Ziva, and holding her tightly, said, "He has to be, Ziva."


	24. Chapter 24

At Blue Ridge Regional Hospital, they were all waiting for word on Agent Chiu and Tony. Ziva paced the waiting room, while Palmer and McGee sat, slumped and tired.

McGee got a few stitches for his troubles, but exams and xrays showed no serious damage, and he was out of the ER in several hours.

Chiu was taken into surgery to do some repair to ligaments and muscle torn through by the bullet, but they expected him to make a full recovery.

Gibbs and Ducky sat in the ICU room with Tony, whose condition was stable, but otherwise undetermined. The antivenom had stopped the advance of any affects to Tony's organs, but the damage done was still being evaluated.

Tony hadn't regained consciousness since Ducky gave him the adrenaline shot. He hoped it wouldn't be the last time they saw their friend's eyes open again. It was likely he was just exhausted.

Gibbs sat, next to the bed, with his head in his hands.

Ducky took his hundredth look at the machinery, beeping next to the younger agent's bed. He looked at the pale face, dark shadows under his eyes, and O2 mask in place. Ducky shook his head sadly, at the state Tony was in. He looked over to Gibbs.

"This is **not **your fault. I know how you think, Jethro. However, this bastard targeted Anthony, and there was no way you could have known."

"I sent him up there…I practically handed him over on a silver platter to that psycho."

Ducky was silent for a moment, knowing that Gibbs was extremely worried about Tony, and felt responsible for what had been done to him.

"No," Ducky said vehemently. "You listen to me now, my old friend, this is no more your fault than what happened to your family."

Gibbs' head snapped up as he stared the M.E. in the face. He was going to say something, but stopped himself. Then he shook his head, and murmured, "I guess."

The both heard something of a whimper come from the still man in the hospital bed.

Gibbs jumped up, and took Tony's hand in his, unconsciously rubbing it with the thumb that overlapped it. He took his other hand and rested it gently on his shoulder.

"Tony?" Ducky called softly from the other side of the bed.

Tony's face was partially hidden by the O2 mask, but they saw the brows knit together as his eyes fluttered slowly open.

He was disoriented. The mask annoyed him and his raised a hand to it, with better coordination than he showed right after the adrenaline shot.

"No, DiNozzo. Leave it," Gibbs said, gently pulling his hand down.

Tony looked at him then. Gibbs could see the stretch of that moment, right before the memories hit, when the green eyes seemed to darken and mist over.

He gasped underneath the mask, staring wide eyed at Gibbs, and grabbing his wrist with his hand. He tried to speak…they could hear the name he forced out …"Miranda…"

Gibbs shook his head sadly, as tears were welling in Tony's eyes…he saw the raw agony in them…"You know," he said as Tony nodded, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment and beginning to shake.

"You saw…" he began and Tony nodded again, starting to choke out a sob. Gibbs sat immediately next to him, and scooped his arms underneath so he had an arm tightly around him. With the other arm he gently lifted the back of Tony's head, rubbing gently with his fingers trying to comfort, as Tony wept on his shoulder. He felt the younger man's hands clutching the back of his shirt, fingers digging in, as if he were a drowning and reaching for air.

Ducky sighed at the heart wrenching sight before him. Then he saw Tony's hands going limp, and his brow start to relax back, as he seemed to lose consciousness again.

Gibbs realized Tony was out again, and set him back on the bed, carefully releasing his head back. He looked at the tear tracks that ran down into the O2 mask. He sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut for just a moment. He got up slowly from the bed and paced slowly.

Ducky was silent, looking at Gibbs with deep concern.

He spoke suddenly in a hushed voice, "Holy _Christ_. He had to watch her die…Duck…this is gonna' be bad."

Ducky was about to reply when the doctor walked in.

"Agent Gibbs, Doctor Mallard." The doctor nodded courteously to them. He stood at the foot of Tony's bed, taking an interested glance at his patient before speaking. They had met Dr. Abramson earlier, when Tony was admitted to the Hospital. He had reassured them that thought it wasn't a military hospital, Tony would get the best possible care.

"We have the tox screen results back, as well as kidney and liver function, and the results of the echocardiogram results. Agent DiNozzo has suffered some extreme but temporary results of the snake venom and drugs introduced to his system. His O2 levels are good considering, and heart seems fine. His liver function seems fine, kidney function a bit sluggish, but I feel that will return to normal in a day or two. We will watch it just in case. If his creatinine levels go up any further we may give him one or two dialysis treatments just to speed the recovery and lower the levels caused by the venom slowing organ function. We will keep him on fluids for a while, since he was extremely dehydrated. We gave him three units of blood when he came in, because he was borderline hypovolemic. But all in all, it seems you got there just in time. Another few hours could have meant permanent damage… or death."

Gibbs let out the breath he'd been holding while Ducky thanked the doctor happily.

"We will move him to a regular room tomorrow, but, for tonight I want him in ICU while we continue the antivenom protocols from Miami Dade. " He looked at them with a subtle warning in his eyes, "He really needs rest." And with that, the doctor went out to the hall and stopped a nurse to instruct her in giving more fluids to Tony.

Gibbs scrubbed at his face with his hands, sighing again, expelling out the fear he had wound up in his body since suspecting Tony was in danger.

He turned back to the bed, taking one of Tony's hands again, and looking at his face.

Tony would escape and permanent physical injury.

But Gibbs knew that wasn't the only damage the madman had done to his friend.


	25. Chapter 25

Michel's cargo van was lined with the red acrylic rug they'd found fibers from. They also discovered upon more focused inquiry, Miranda had been a Therapist at the Children's Mental Health Department at St. Mary's, the year before, but quit after her father's death.

Michel's paintings and all the horrific souvenirs of his studio went into evidence at NCIS.

There was a funeral for Dillon, who left behind a wife and two children. Gibbs attended, spending most of his time next to Fornell, and the team. It was a cold day, snow still on the ground from the weekend storm.

Agent Chiu had his arm in a sling. He stood, looking forlornly at the casket containing his partner of five years as it was lowered into the ground.

Fornell was pale, and went to talk to the widow and give his condolences after Gibbs and the rest of the team. Even Vance had come to pay his respects.

Gibbs felt vaguely guilty every time he thought, with relief, _It could've been Tony, in the casket_. It was far too close this time. Tony, who wasn't there, was still weak from his trauma in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Gibbs had taken him home to his house, deeply worried about the lifelessness his SFA was displaying to them all.

When he'd started to recover over the several days he was in the hospital, it was obvious something had broken in him. He'd barely spoken to anyone, giving one to two word answers if he could avoid a conversation. His face was still not quite back to its usual healthy color, and the cobra bite was scabbing over, a sickly memento.

The only time he spoke more than that was to ask McGee to find any relatives of Miranda's. Anyone who would care she was dead, and give her a proper burial. The Probie immediately found an Aunt Julia, who took over all the details and Miranda's estate dealings.

Once he knew that was done, he seemed to go back into a shell, not even talking much to Abby, who'd driven up from D.C. to spend time with him in the hospital.

Vance gave Gibbs the directive that Tony was to pass a psych evaluation when he felt better, before coming back to work. Gibbs didn't fight him on it.

When Gibbs arrived home from Dillon's funeral, he hoped Tony would be resting. He was still getting random fevers, and chills, as his body continued to flush itself out of the antagonistic toxins it had been subjected to.

The house was quiet. And dark. He came in, throwing his keys and tie on the table.

He checked the living room, and the guestroom, finding a distinct lack of presence. His gut started twisting.

It was too cold out for a stroll. He went down to the basement, and still, no Tony. But he did notice the bottle of Bourbon missing. He sighed, worriedly, and went back upstairs.

Out the kitchen door, he finally saw a silhouette, in the dark outside. He was sitting, on the edge of the deck, bottle of Bourbon, nearly empty, on the railing. Gibbs tried to remember…had it been down to a third or a quarter ? "Jesus," he whispered to himself. He didn't need Tony to die of alcohol poisoning right after they'd saved him from snake venom…he realized the irony of the thought.

Tony didn't seem to notice him come out onto the deck until Gibbs sat next to him.

He'd been looking up at the sky. It was nearly a new moon, but most of the stars could still be seen.

They sat in silence for a while.

"I pulled my gun on her," Tony said softly, looking down at the yard.

Gibbs nodded. "You thought she was in on it,with Gravois, when the drugs hit your system."

Tony nodded.

"Hell, I would'a thought the same thing, Tony," Gibbs continued gently.

Tony turned to him now, with bloodshot eyes. "Whads it really come down to, Gibbs ?" Tony's words were slightly slurred.

_He's way gone,_ Gibbs thought grimly, _if he's slurring._

"What do you mean?" Gibbs asked.

"Do we.. have'ta choose…between work, and relationships ? I mean…lookatchyou, Gibbs. Look wha happened to…to Shannon, and Kelly." Tony was starting to sound angry. "You…you didn't deserve that…you…didn't…" he trailed off, looking back at the yard. The next part was thick with emotion, "You're the best person I know…you didn't…"

Gibbs felt like broken glass had been shoved into his heart.

Tony suddenly put his head in his trembling hands, nearly whispering, "I'msssorry. I'm so sorry, Gibbs."

Gibbs took a breath in, noting the puff of steam as he let it out. Tony had been out sitting there in just jeans and a tee shirt.

"You're right," he said, as Tony looked at him once more, seeing a tear rolling down one cheek. "I didn't deserve it. And neither did you."

Tony stared at him for a moment, and then laid flat back on the deck, with a clumsy thud, looking up at the stars.

"Whaddmy supposed to do? They just don't end up writing blogs… or posting pissed off crap online…or even sending me hatemail." He was louder now. "They end up **dead**."

Gibbs realized it was very possible Tony wouldn't even remember the exchange. So he reached out to grab Tony's hand and pull him up to go inside. It was ice cold.

"DiNozzo, come on, you're freezing. Inside. Now." Tony complied with the order.

Once back in the house, He put Tony on the couch, wrapping a blanket around him and put on coffee. He got a glass of water and several aspirin, thinking to help spare Tony some of the vicious hang over he was going to have. But when he came back in the living room, Tony was passed out. He left them on the end table.

He sighed. And looked at the pale face, still red in splotches from being outside in the cold.

He stroked Tony's face for a moment, and shook his head. He knew he really didn't have an answer for what the younger man was going through.

"We'll just have to take it a day at a time," he said to himself, as he heard the coffee maker beeping. He rolled his eyes at the sad waste of good coffee beans.

Gibbs awoke at about 4 am. He wasn't sure what had done it. It wouldn't take much since he was an early riser.

But he heard the downstairs bathroom water running. _And there it is,_ he thought. Tony had likely already puked his guts up.

He got up, and walked down the stairs. He approached the door, knocking softly.

A low groan answered him.

"Tony? You okay?" he asked through the door.

"Nnnnoo," was the definitive answer.

"I'm coming in," Gibbs announced while slowly opening the door.

He was on the floor, curled up with his eyes closed.

"Dammit, DiNozzo."

"Please…don't headslap me Boss, I may puke on you," he said weakly and moaned.

"I won't. For now." Gibbs smiled a little at the bit of personality at least he had displayed in the comment. "Come on," Gibbs went to help him up again, and noticed the heat coming off his skin even before he touched it.

He let Tony stay on the floor for a moment while he put a hand on his forehead. "You're burning up…" his eyes now worriedly took in how Tony's hair was matted and he was covered in sweat. "I swear to God, if I have to take you back to the hospital I'm gonna headsmack your head clean off your body."

"I don't need it anyway Boss…" Tony murmured, still not opening his eyes.

"Come on, let's get you into bed." Gibbs got him to sit up, and got Tony's left arm over his shoulder so he could help him walk to the guest room. They got half way there when he felt the weight of Tony's body growing heavier. He looked at the young man's face, and tapped it lightly, "Come on, come on, Tony." It seemed to work as the weight distribution shifted back again.

He got Tony to the guest room finally, and he practically dropped into the bed. Gibbs pulled up the covers on him and walked directly out of the room as Tony softly muttered something incoherent under his breath.

"_Jethro, everything alright ?"_

"Ahhh, I dunno, Duck. I found him drunk off his ass on Bourbon when I got home. He got sick, threw up…no mystery there. But…I think he has a fever. Feels pretty hot. I don't wanna have to take him back to the hospital if I don't have to. Can you come over and take a look at him ?"

"_Ah, poor Anthony… Yes. I will be over shortly, Jethro. I'm sure he just exacerbated some of the leftover symptoms from his ordeal, but, I will certainly take a look at him."_

"Thanks Duck," Gibbs said, feeling more relieved than he would ever admit to.


	26. Chapter 26

By the time Ducky arrived, Gibbs was truly upset. He tried to get Tony to settle down, placing a cold compress on his head.

But the younger man just tossed, restlessly, occasionally looking at Gibbs with glassy eyes. "S'okay," he mumbled, "I'm okay Boss. Don't worry."

"Oh dear," Ducky sighed as he took in the sight of Tony's condition. He immediately got his thermometer out of his bag, passing it over Tony's damp forehead. The reading was immediate, "102.5 degrees." Ducky shook his head, looking at Gibbs. "If it goes up to 103, I'd say we have to take him to Bethesda. I would probably feel better if we took him now, but we can try to get the fever down and see."

Gibbs nodded gratefully. "What do we need?"

"Well firstly, get some water and Tylenol in him. Then a basin with cool water, a bottle of alcohol, and a few cloths to use as compresses. We'll need to get the shirt off at least to lay them on more of his body."

Gibbs quickly got everything Ducky asked for.

"Tony, sit up," he ordered, bringing in the Tylenol and water. Tony looked at him, confused at first, and then struggled up, taking the pills and swallowing down some water. He flopped back down on the bed, and suddenly looked at Ducky, as if just having noticed his presence.

"Hi Ducky," he said softly. "I'm not going back to the hospital am I? Cos' that would really suck."

"Not if we can help it, Tony. Can you sit up and take off your shirt?"

Tony nodded and struggled up again, flinging his tee shirt to the side after he'd gotten it over his head. The effort seemed to exhaust him, because then he closed his eyes for a while drifting. That was, until Ducky put the cold compresses on his skin.

He jumped and his eyes flew open. He gasped with the shock it gave his skin.

"Alright, I know, it's quite cold," Ducky soothed.

When Gibbs walked over to the bedside table to put more cloths beside the basin, Tony's eyes followed him, and became momentarily transfixed on it.

In his mind he saw the cart Michel had wheeled next to him, with the ceramic bowl used to hold Tony's blood.

He broke his gaze away, suddenly gasping for air.

"Tony-" Ducky began but Tony lunged away from him, kicking off the covers and stepping away from the bed. Gibbs went quickly to get hold of him, but Tony pushed away from him, stumbling into the living room.

"DiNozzo !" Gibbs growled at him, following him to where he weakened, and dropped to his knees next to the coffee table. Gibbs didn't understand what had happened to set him off, but Ducky had a better view of what happened.

As he knelt down next to Tony, he heard Ducky say, "It was the bowl…" and then Gibbs got it.

Tony was curled over himself, shaking, images of what Michel had done floating through his fevered mind. And Miranda's face, looking at him with that silent, desperate plea in her eyes. He choked on the words, "Right in front of me…" He pounded his fist into the floor, then screamed them, pounding some more, "**Right. In. Front. Of. Me." **He moaned in despair.

Gibbs stroked his back, remaining silent for the moment. Ducky stood a few feet from them, patiently, with anguish in his eyes.

Tony sat up suddenly and looked right at Gibbs, with his glassy eyes, more tears rolling down his face. "I couldn't move…" he choked out. And then whispered, "I was right there."

Gibbs took Tony's face in his hands and said firmly, "Not your fault. It is **not **your fault. You did not kill her, Tony. Gravois did. And there was no way you could do anything, with what he had already done to you." He stared into Tony's eyes, trying to embed the message into his brain.

Tony blinked a few times, brows knit together, and then nodded once. His burst of energy seemed to be flagging.

Gibbs let one of his hands drop around Tony's shoulders, and he gently scrubbed the side of Tony's head with the other. "Come on. Unless you wanna go to Bethesda, you have to let Ducky take care of you." Gibbs helped him up, slowly, and back to the guest room.

He fell into a restless sleep, exhausted.

Mostly due to Ducky's ministrations, they got the fever under control by 09:00.

Ducky and Gibbs sat at the kitchen table for tea and coffee, both tired and silent.

Finally, Ducky said, "I think Tony is going to need the services of Doctor Cranston, I think he's been far too traumatized to imagine this will just get better on its own."

Gibbs sighed. He nodded, knowing Ducky was right.

"He likes her well enough. She's helped him before. And no matter what, he has all of us. And that will be enough, Duck. It has to be."


	27. Chapter 27

Ziva was watching Tony, on his first day back. She and McGee had missed him. He'd been out three weeks.

Agent Chiu had called them to see how Tony was, and even sent him an email, to express his concern for how he was doing.

They got to see him at Gibbs' house, and then last week they all went over for pizza at his apartment to get him settled back in. Abby even gave him a pizza phone, similar to McGee's hamburger phone, and Tony gave her a rewarding smile.

It had taken a little while, but he seemed to be coming back to them.

Tony was shuffling papers around, trying to organize the mess he'd left the day Gibbs sent him home, when Miranda was still alive.

Sheila from the mailroom was passing by Tony's desk. She loitered a little as he looked up.

"Hi Sheila. Can I help you with something?"

Ziva and McGee were staring at the leggy blonde, who had big blue eyes and a ski slope nose. Gibbs glanced over covertly.

"Ah…" she came closer to Tony's desk. "I'm actually leaving and going to work for a commercial company. And, today's my last day. I was just wondering, if you'd have a drink with me tonight." She looked fairly confident Tony would say yes. After all, he had flirted with her outrageously several times last year.

He froze for a moment, and then looked down at his desk. He caught sight of the magazine tear page he'd gotten from Petty Officer McKenna's fridgerator door, not knowing at the time if there was a clue on it. Somehow his eyes zoned in right at that moment, under Gallery Shows, "Galleries Du Cerisier, Featuring the works of Miranda Bianchi" and he took a deep breath.

He looked back up to Sheila, and smiled a little, "No, thanks. I have plans already, but good luck on your new job. I'm sure you'll be great."

"Oh…okay, Tony. Maybe some other time," she said with obvious disappointment, and left with Ziva throwing mental daggers at her back.

Tony couldn't look at any of them right at that moment. So instead he looked at his computer, going through his email.

He saw the one from Agent Chiu, entitled "Hi Tony" in the subject matter.

He opened it. It read :

_Hi Tony,_

_I hope you are doing alright after everything that went down with Gravois. I'm keeping in touch with Dillon's family, to see if I can help them with anything. He would have wanted that. _

_I heard from Ziva you were coming back to work. I'm glad. You're a good Agent. _

_Maybe when things cool down some more, we can go get a beer. Or five._

_Anyway, I wanted to say that I'm sorry for what happened to you, and Miranda Bianchi. _

_My grandmother was Cantonese, and she had a lot of sayings she used to tell us when something went really well, or horribly wrong. There's one that stuck with me, she used to say it when I was trying to get past difficult times. _

_It goes, "A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song."_

_Kinda too deep for me, but grandma…she used to smoke opium in the old country, so I figure she had more in way of deep thoughts. _

_Take care,_

_Chiu_

Tony smiled, and clicked on his next email.

**The End.**

**A/N :** Bless you guys for all the support ! Happy Halloween 2011 ! Hope you enjoyed this tale woven from my crazy brain. I think maybe secretly I'm a serial killer who's just too lazy to kill anyone. SO I'll just write stories like these occasionally.

Next up : The Net. In the research phase, but will begin soon. CIAO !


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